Beyond Limits
by Aquatic Smores
Summary: There comes a time when a hero will need to go beyond their limits to survive the oncoming trials. Does the new Order of the Stone have what it takes to go beyond their limits? Only time will tell if our heroes will survive what lies before them as they risk their lives to save all that they hold dear.
1. Episode 1: Prolouge

**_BEYOND LIMITS_**

 ** _EPISODE ONE: ILL-GOTTEN DISCOVERIES_**

 **PROLOUGE**

The last of the golden rays shone across the land as the square sun began to slowly disappear towards the horizon to the west. Many people and animals quickly returned to their homes to avoid the oncoming monsters, just as they did every day in their world. Only a hero or a brave fool needing a monster's loot would dare venture out into the dark and dangerous night, where there was nothing but terrifying creatures that attacked anything that crossed their path.

However, one villager thought confidently, the monsters only appeared just after the sun had set. So he had just enough time to finish his farming.

Finished planting the last of his carrots, the villager hmm'ed contently as he looked over at the newly planted vegetables and mentally patted himself on the back. It only took the entire day, but he had successfully replanted all the food that had been stolen by a couple of annoying griefers. Soon, the food would grow back and the village would be satisfied.

Just as the sun had finally set, the villager turned away from the small farm and made his way toward his house. Glancing around, he saw there were no zombies or monsters in sight, which made the farming villager relax.

 _*Crunch*_

Hearing a strange noise in the dark, the villager started to panic and looked around for any sign of anything or anyone who could have made the noise. Once he spotted a few sheep chewing on some grass, he began to relax again. The night was not a time for a villager to be out, even if it was only a few moments after sunset. The villager turned around and began to take another step…

... Before something grabbed a hold of the villager's neck and put what felt like a hand on his mouth to keep him from screaming.

The villager struggled and tried to pull away but whatever grabbed the farmer was too strong compared to a simple villager and any attempts to pull away would be in vain. Then the hand that was on the villager's mouth was lifted away and before the villager could get the chance to let out a yell, a strange bottle was shoved into the farmer's mouth. The villager could feel something cold slither down his throat and suddenly, the farming villager suddenly felt very tired. So… very tired…

The villager collapsed onto the ground, letting the bottle drop from his mouth onto the ground. Then, after picking up the empty bottle, an invisible force began to drag the unconscious villager away into the night, never to be seen again.

None of the other villagers in the small village were any the wiser of what transpired.

 _ **-MCSM-**_

The next morning, several of the villagers wondered what happened to the missing farmer. Many speculated that a zombie had gotten him before he returned to his home. Others thought that a griefer came along and killed him for 'fun'. Whatever the case, the village was saddened by the loss of the farmer but continued on with their daily tasks.

Sadly, whoever took the farmer was not done with the village.

The next night, a cleric just about to return home had also disappeared. Then the night after that, a fisherman was taken from the inside of his house. That had shocked the villagers the most. Zombies rarely ever entered a villager's home unless the door was broken or the villager had opened it. Strangely, the door did not appear to be broken and it was shut tight when the other villagers had inspected it. Griefers would also never just take a villager from their home without causing some destruction to the property.

Night after night, the invisible force returned and took another villager as its victim. Whether locked up at home or outside for only a moment, the villager would disappear without any trace.

The villagers began to plead to any human that came to their humble village to help them uncover the truth of what happened to the villagers at night and put a stop to it. Sadly, the humans that came were either unskilled in battle or just simply didn't care. The villagers were about to lose hope…

… Until they heard the story of the newly formed Order of the Stone.

The Order of the Stone was a group of friends that had banded together to take out the Witherstorm and saved the world. There was also other tales of the Order going to other worlds other than the Nether and the End, but the villagers figured they were completely made-up and held no truth.

Still, if there was anyone that would help them in their time of need, it was the Order of the Stone.

* * *

 **Note on 7/13/17: This story was created before season two was even announced. So consider this a sort of AU. :)**

* * *

 **A/N: WOO! New story! I am PUMPED to write this baby. YEAH!**

 **Okay, so I made a New Years resolution to write more things. And I just so happened to complete Minecraft: Story Mode the first week of the year.**

 **I gotta say, I was rather impressed with MCSM. I didn't really expect anything and I kept my expectations low but MCSM knocked them out of the park. Sure it had a few glitches but, eh, that's Telltale games for ya'. Good at stories, not so much at fixing some bugs and graphical glitches.**

 **Anyway, MCSM inspired me to replay some Minecraft since it's been YEARS since I played Minecraft from start to End. And since it's been years, there's been a lot of updates to it too. Like llamas. There's llamas now.**

 **Anyway, the point is: I finished MCSM, replayed Minecraft, got some ideas for a story, got out of control in my head, got the urge to write it.**

 **And so here I am. Prologue is shorter than I would have liked but I didn't want to ramble on unnecessarily. Or am I doing it now in the author notes? Hm.**

 **Okay, so here's the deal. I thought about it and I've decided to let the readers decide some of the points for the story VIA polls on my profile. I'll be a little vague on some of them as to not spoil anything but it shouldn't be a problem. First one should be on my profile right now and it's an easy one.**

 **Who's armor did Jesse take in Episode 3? Ellegard's or Magnus'? YOU WILL DECIDE!**

 **Also, the Jesse in the story will be female Jesse. I'll try to be vague on her appearance so you can imagine your own female Jesse as you read. Though, if you're curious, I chose the one with the red highlight and her armor is the Shield of Infinity! Because it's infinitely cool. Just like Jesse. Clearly.**

 **Anyway, that's enough outta me. Until next time!**


	2. Episode 1: Chapter 1

**CHAPTER ONE**

Jesse felt a bead of sweat roll down the side of her head as she stared at what was in front of her. She held her hands together and brought them up to her mouth in thought. Jesse could feel her heart hammer in her chest as she considered her options carefully. Whatever it was she was doing, it was truly one of the toughest challenges she ever had to face. Possibly more than the Witherstorm! Maybe even tougher than her fight against PAMA or two of the Old Builders!

Okay, maybe she was over exaggerating. Still, whatever she was doing was taking a lot out of her.

"Ugh, no! Not this one either!" Jesse reached down and crumpled the piece of paper in front of her and tossed it behind her in annoyance. Pulling out another piece from her inventory, she brought her quill pen to the sheet of paper and began to sketch out some lines.

Glancing at the bookshelves around her occasionally while she was sketching, she briefly wondered if any of the books on the shelves would have anything that would inspire her. Though, after some thought, she figured they would hold nothing that would help. All the books around her came directly from the Far Lands where Ivor's secret lab was located so they more than likely held nothing but potion making instructions, which was the last thing Jesse needed. After Ivor decided to move to the new town after it was rebuilt, he took several of the books from his old lab and put it in the basement (underneath the treasure room) of the new Hall of the Order of the Stone; or rather, Order Hall as Jesse liked to call it.

So there was Jesse, sitting at a table as she drew her newest idea which she hoped turned out better than the others that came before it.

"Okay, what if I added emerald blocks to it?" Jesse considered for a moment as she drew out the details on the paper in front of her. After she was finished, she brought it up to her face and stared at it in thought. Then, with a disappointed sigh, she crumpled up yet another piece of paper and tossed it behind her along with the rest of the discarded disappointments.

"Woah, hey! Watch where you're throwing things."

A surprised shout came from behind Jesse, startling her from her thoughts and turned around in surprise. She smiled as soon as she saw one of her best friends, Olivia. Her redstone loving friend rubbed her head and held out the ball of paper that had hit her as she looked at Jesse questioningly. Jesse just shrugged and rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "Sorry, Olivia. Didn't hear you come in."

"Wow, even after I said 'Jesse, are you in here? Hey, what's that you're working on?' You must have really been focusing on something if you didn't hear me until I was right behind you." Olivia crossed her arms as she looked at Jesse and then the large pile of discarded bunched-up papers she was standing next to.

"I was just really in the zone, Olivia," Jesse explained, before sighing and crossing her arms. "Anyway, remember a few months ago when we helped rebuild the town after the Witherstorm pretty much made everyone homeless?"

"Whew, hard to forget that. We helped everyone in town rebuild their houses. Never thought I'd install as many redstone lamps as I did. Not to mention helping you finish up that memorial for Reuben," Olivia said before raising her eyebrow questioningly, "What does this have to do with your mountain of papers?"

"Ahah, well, funny story," Jesse chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of her head. "See, when we were rebuilding everything and helping everyone with their new houses, I kinda sorta maybe forgot to make myself a new house."

Olivia's eyes widen in surprised and stared at in her friend in shock, "Wait… you forgot to make yourself a house?"

"That… is what I said," Jesse sighed and looked down at her hands. "After the Witherstrom destroyed everything including the treehouse, I just sorta dove straight into helping people get back on their feet and I wanted to make sure Reuben had the best memorial we could build. So I just …" Jesse paused, "Kept putting it off."

"What about after that? After the town was fixed up and better than ever?"

"Well, then we started going on all those adventures. Exploring temples, getting treasure from ruins, practicing our cool moves. Didn't really need to make myself a new home when all I did was go out and explore everything," Jesse explained before she groaned and put her face in her hands. "Then me, Petra, Lukas and Ivor got caught up in all that portal hopping and I completely forgot about it altogether. Once we got back, though, I just wanted to relax at my house and that's when I remembered I didn't exactly have a house to go back to." She then pulled out another piece of paper from her inventory and waved it around, "So now all I've been doing now is trying to figure out what kind of house I want to make."

Olivia nodded to herself in understanding before she looked back at Jesse. "Okay, I get that. But how long have you been working on this?"

Jesse considered for a moment before answering, "Well, let's see… I started making blueprints at the crack of dawn and now it's…" Jesse glanced at the clock in the frame on the wall next to her before her eyes widened in surprise, "… a little past midday. Oh… wow… I did not think I was down here for that long."

Even Olivia was surprised by that fact. "Wow, since dawn? You've never had this much trouble planning a build before. Are you feeling okay?"

Jesse just shrugged and smiled confidently at her best friend. "I'm fine, Olivia. I just have a bit of a case of Builder's Block. It'll pass eventually," Jesse said, trying to keep her voice from wavering. While it was true that she had a case of Builder's Block, each unsatisfied blueprint just reminded her that her old home was gone, along with…

Jesse pushed that thought out of her head and focused on Olivia. She didn't need to think about that at the moment.

Olivia, seemingly buying Jesse's half-lie, grinned at her friend. "Well, if you say so. Maybe I can help you out with ideas."

Jesse grinned back, "Thanks, Olivia. I certainly could use the help."

"Okay, first let's see what your last idea was," Olivia said, smoothing out the paper that had hit her earlier and looked over it. The moment she finished staring at the crudely sketched house, Olivia looked over at her friend with a raised eyebrow. "A five-story diamond block house with an emerald block foundation with gold block trimmings and an iron block roof… that seems way too flashy and gaudy for you. Or… anyone for that matter."

Jesse just groaned in response, and faceplanted the table in front of her. "I know…"

Wincing as her friend's face landed hard on the table, Olivia decided that what Jesse needed the most at the moment was to get away from all the sketching and take her mind off house planning… at least for a little while.

"Hey, how about we go out and get some fresh air? Anything's probably better right now than sitting in a damp, cold basement for another half-a-day making your paper pile even bigger."

Jesse lifted her head off the table as she considered for a moment before her face broke into a wide smile and she leapt from her chair, "That's actually a pretty sweet idea. If I stay down here any longer, I'll probably lose my mind."

Shoving all the pieces of paper she discarded on the floor into her inventory, she jogged toward the stairs that led out of the basement and turned back to Olivia, "Well? Let's go! I can practically hear the fresh air calling my name!" She said before she rushed up the stairs, taking two steps at a time.

Olivia just laughed good heartily at her friend's eagerness and followed after her.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

Finally outside in the sunlight, Jesse took a deep breath as she breathed in the outside air before walking down the stairs with Olivia and looked toward the town and all the people that went about their daily lives. A few civilians spotted Jesse and Olivia walking down the stairs of Order Hall and waved at their heroes eagerly. Both Jesse and Olivia waved back with a smile.

"Oh wow, I just love the way the town looks now. It's hard to imagine that just six months ago there was a Witherstorm that just destroyed everything," Jesse muttered in awe as she looked over the town as she finished walking down the stairs.

"Yeah, what's even more amazing is that all the people are going about their day like nothing ever happened," Olivia commented as she looked over at a few shops and people making purchases. "The houses may be new, but the people are the same as ever."

"True," Jesse said as she continued to look around the town. Her eyes stopped where Ivor's house once stood and frowned. "Though, I kinda wish I didn't say that Ivor's house should be taken down."

"I do feel bad too but… his lava was getting everywhere. We had to take it down," Olivia said before smiling at her friend. "Hey, but we can always make him a new house before he comes back from wherever he ran off too. One bigger and better and just as menacing. Only with a lot less lava."

"Also true," Jesse said before looking over her friend questioningly. "You know, Olivia, I've been meaning to ask… what happened when me and the others were trapped in the Portal Network? Did anything happen with you and Axel while we were gone? Did you guys go on adventures without us and looked after the town?"

Olivia looked thoughtful for a moment before responding, "Well, after about a week, me and Axel were starting to worry and wondered where you guys went to but we didn't know where to even begin to look. I thought that maybe you, Petra and Lukas went with Ivor back to the temple where we got that enchanted flint and steel and we started looking there. We did find this strange looking arch for a portal in the room above the lever puzzle but it wouldn't work with a normal flint and steel."

"Wait… it wasn't? But that's where we went through it to get to Sky City and chased after Aiden. Did it just close up after we went through it?" Jesse wondered aloud, her question not really directed at anyone.

"I have no idea. All I knew is that it didn't work. We still tried to look for you guys but we also made some improvements to town. Made a few auto cookers for a few restaurants, made an automatic sorting system… you know, stuff that helps out people. As for Axel, he visited Boom Town to see if they rebuilt after the Witherstorm attack… or at least, the closest thing for rebuilding for a town of griefers." Olivia just shook her head and sighed at the thought. "Axel said that the new buildings there are even more destroyed than before. Which… works for them, I guess?"

Jesse smiled at the news, "Well, it's good to hear that they're doing alright, all things considered. Especially since Magnus is gone." Her smile faded at the memory, remembering how she had taken his armor from him when he offered. Perhaps if she had refused his offer, he would still be alive, but it was possible if she did, she would have died instead. Jesse knew there was nothing she could have done, but she still felt guilty over his death.

Olivia noticed the drop in her friend's mood and looked at her sympathetically, "Yeah… I know Axel still misses him too." She then looked at her friend questioningly, "Didn't you tell me once that you were the new King… uh, Queen of Boom Town?"

Jesse just shrugged in response, "Yeah, I defeated Magnus in a duel and that made me the new king... uh, queen. Though, after the Witherstorm was taken care of, I told Axel he could be the new King."

Olivia looked at her and nodded. "Yeah, Axel loves going on and on how he's the new King of Boom Town. Though, I'm surprised you gave up the title in the first place."

"Yeah. The thought of being king… uh, queen was a pretty awesome but I don't think I could've handled all those people trying to take the title from me every single time I went there," Jesse said before smiling cheerfully, "But hey, at least I made Axel happy when I told him."

"You're a good friend, Jesse," Olivia said with a smile before it dropped and she put a hand to her chin as if she was in deep in thought. Jesse raised an eyebrow, wondering why her friend looked serious all of a sudden.

"Hey, Olivia? Is something on your mind?"

"I… well, sorta. It's just…" Olivia tried her best to find the words to say but no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't say anything. Eventually, she just sighed and turned to her friend, "I'll… tell you later, okay?"

Jesse looked worriedly at her friend, wondering what could weigh heavily on Olivia's mind. However, she decided not to push for information. If one of her best friends didn't want to tell her something, who was she to force it out of them? Still, it didn't make her any less worried.

"Well, alright. But you know you can talk to me about anything, right?"

Olivia perked up and smiled softly at her friend. "Thanks, Jesse. Thanks for being understanding."

Jesse smiled in return and patted her on the back, "Of course I am. You're my friend; I always have your back."

Olivia was about say something else, before a familiar face caught her eye. "Speaking of friends, I think I see one of them standing over there."

Jesse raised an eyebrow and followed Olivia's gaze before breaking into a wide grin. There, leaning on one of the houses with a book in hand, was a familiar blond guy wearing goggles and orange, black and silver armor. He was looking intently at the pages in front of him before shaking his head and looking over at some papers he was holding in his other hand.

"Hey, Lukas! Good afternoon!" Jesse called out to him, waving at him to see if she could get his attention.

Surprised by the sudden voice calling out to him, Lukas yelped out in surprise and threw his book slightly into the air before catching it before it could fall to the ground. The papers he was holding also threatened to blow away in the wind before Lukas quickly caught them and put them in the book for safety. Glad that he didn't lose any of the objects he was holding onto, he let out a sigh of relief before turning to where he heard the voice.

"Oh hey, Jesse. Hey, Olivia. Haven't seen you guys all day," Lukas greeted them as he waved back with a smile before his friends reached him.

"Well, I've been a little busy," Jesse said before glancing down at the book in his hand. "Aw, sweet. Did you get a new journal?"

"Oh uh…" Caught off guard by the question, Lukas began to shift his eyes side to side before speaking, "Actually, I've had this journal from before the Witherstorm. I write down build ideas, blueprints… you know, things like that." Lukas quickly switched out the book he was holding before pulling out another one from his inventory, "THIS is the new journal I told you I'd get." He flipped open the book and showed Jesse and Olivia all the brand new blank pages, "All new and fresh and ready to be written on."

"Awesome. Can't wait to see what you write in it," Jesse said eagerly. A part of Jesse briefly wondered why Lukas acted shifty with his other journal but decided to brush the feeling off.

Before Lukas could respond, Olivia decide to cut in. "Hey, Lukas. You said you were writing down blueprints, right? You wouldn't happen to have any ideas for houses, would you?"

"Yeah, of course I do. I did design most of the houses that were rebuilt and the new Hall of the Order of the Stone," Lukas said before raising an eyebrow questioningly. "Do you need to borrow a blueprint or something?"

Understanding what Olivia was doing, Jesse decided to speak up, "Actually, something like that," She said before she filled Lukas in on what was going on. She told him how she neglected making herself a house after the Witherstorm destroyed everything, how she was too busy to focus on her own needs, how she woke up at dawn and tried to plan a house only to fail miserably… basically, it was a similar conversation to what she told Olivia earlier.

"… So me and Olivia are going to try to work on building me a house later. You wanna join us?" Jesse said, finally finishing her explanation.

"Sure, of course I'll help," Lukas said before he looked at Jesse curiously, "Though I find it hard to believe that you couldn't think up a good build for your house. You're a good builder."

Jesse smiled at the compliment. "Thanks, but this case of Builder's Block is really wearing me down," she said before she pulled out a crumpled piece of paper out from her inventory and handed it to Lukas. "Exhibit A."

Lukas unfolded the paper and stared at it for a moment before wincing, "Wow, uh, okay. An emerald block tower with a lapis foundation and… is that a tree made of iron at the top?" He said before looking at his friend. "I never took you for the flashy and gaudy type."

Jesse face palmed, ignoring the 'I told you so' look on Olivia's face. "So I've been told…"

Lukas stared at the paper for a few more seconds before handing it back to Jesse. He looked thoughtful for a moment before he spoke, "Hey, maybe I could-" Before he could finish his sentence, however, the three friends heard someone calling out to them.

"Hey! Hey, guys! There you are!" A familiar large man with dark hair wearing a green outfit and a glass helmet ran up to them before taking a deep breath and put his hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath. "Whew, there you guys are. I've been looking all over for you."

"Hey Axel. What's up?" Jesse said as she smiled at her big friend and looked at him curiously.

"Oh, nothing much. There's just someone at the gate asking for help. Apparently, something's going on with a village and they need the Order of the Stone's help. I didn't really ask for details," Axel said before he looked at his three friends and raised an eyebrow. "I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

"Someone needs our help?" Jesse repeated Axel's words before she took on a serious look and a smile full of confidence. "Looks like the Order of Stone is on the case!" She exclaimed before she began to head towards the gate.

"Wait, Jesse, what about your-" Lukas was about to say something before Jesse cut him off.

"No time for talking about houses! Not when there's people to save!" And with that, Jesse bolted down the street and straight towards the gate. The three friends that she left behind looked at each other before following after their leader albeit at a slower pace.

Though the four friends had no idea what was in store, the Order of the Stone was prepared for whatever would happen.

… At least, that's what they thought.

* * *

 **A/N: I call this the 'Talking and setting up future plot points' chapter. From the looks of things, the chapters will get longer and longer as we get deeper into the meat of the story.**

 **Honestly, I just came up with the house thing out of thin air. Mostly because we never actually SAW Jesse enter her house or see her make one or if she's roommates with the rest of the Order of the Stone.**

 **I see Jesse (or at least my version of Jesse) as someone who would put others first and would only think of herself after everybody else is taken care of. Awww, sweet selfless Jesse. :3**

 **Also, yes, there will be romantic Lukesse in this story albeit not right away (OR WILL IT?). Though... I kinda thought that their names being in brackets in the description would give that away. xD**

 **I know it says Adventure/Friendship and I said that there'll be romance but that's because that friendship will have a bigger part in the story than romance. While romance WILL have a part in the this story, the friendship between the Order of the Stone will play a bigger one.**

 **ANYWAY, next poll is up so head to my profile and vote! It'll determine what Jesse will do in a future chapter! It's a little vague but that's the point. But if you're good at guessing plot you can probably guess what'll happen.**

 **Also, the people have spoken and Jesse chose Magnus' armor in episode three! That also means he's dead and won't appear in the story. Oops?**

 **Until next time! Tell me what you guys think so far! :D**


	3. Episode 1: Chapter 2

**CHAPTER TWO**

Llamas.

There was a lot of llamas.

Jesse had never seen that many llamas before in her life… or at least, as not many as she saw at that moment. Each different llama had a different colored saddle on their back and they were scattered in front of the gate looking off into the distance as if they were in their own little world.

"Uh… excuse me, anyone here ask for the Order of the Stone?" Jesse called out to the herd of llamas but nobody responded. She looked at one of the llamas in the herd with a questioning gaze. "You didn't happen to need help, did you?"

"Buh-wa," Came the llama's reply.

"… Yeah, thought not."

Hearing footsteps behind her, Jesse turned around to see her friends looking at the pack of llamas with wide eyes. All except for Axel, who had just shrugged his shoulders in indifference at the sight in front of the gate, having seen it before moments ago.

"Uh, we didn't get asked to help a bunch of llamas, did we?" Lukas asked as he stared warily at one of the llamas looking in his direction. He could have sworn it was glaring at him.

"What? No, that'd be stupid," Axel said as he looked over the pack off llamas. "There should be a lady somewhere around here…" His eyes scanned the pack before pointing towards the middle. "Aha! There she is, right on that horse."

Right in the dead center of the pack of llamas, was a white horse that had blended in with the other llamas. On top of the horse was what looked to be a person with dark blue shoulder length hair wearing a light blue poncho that had a similar design to one of the llama's saddles. On top of her head was a hat with a design that was the same as her poncho and had little ear flaps on the side, covering her ears. From what Jesse could tell, the foreign girl had her eyes closed and was nuzzling the mane of the horse with her face.

Wait, was she snoring?

"Wow, she's asleep? I didn't think I was gone that long," Axel said as he scratched the back of his head as he tried to count down how many minutes it took him to find the rest of the Order.

"Uh, hey! Wake up!" Jesse called out to the girl but there was no response. "Hey! Wake up!" Jesse tried to call out a little louder but there was still no response. Taking a deep breath, Jesse yelled at the top of her lungs, "WAKE UP ALREADY!"

"AH! CREEPER!" The girl, having been woken up from a sound sleep, flailed her arms out randomly as she not-so-gracefully fell off her horse. The llamas, startled from the fall of their master, fled in all directions and revealed the girl had landed on the ground with her face. "Ow…" She groaned.

Jesse jogged over to her and reached out her hand in an attempt to help. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you. I just wanted to ask you something."

"No, it's okay… I fall off my horse all the time. I'm used to it," the strange girl said, accepting the hand Jesse offered and pulled herself up to her feet. Her eyes widened the moment she laid eyes on Jesse and then looked behind her at the other people. "Oh… my… gravel… It's the Order of the Stone!" The girl practically squeaked out. Her eyes went straight to her hand, who was stilling holding onto Jesse's hand, before letting go and stared at it in awe. "Oh my… I touched one of the members of the Order of the Stone's hand!" She smiled before it dropped from her face and she paled. "Oh… the Order of the Stone saw me fall off my horse… like an idiot…" She groaned to herself before she covered her face with her hands in embarrassment.

"Uh… it actually wasn't that bad. I've seen plenty of people fall off their horses before! I'd give your fall a nine out of ten!" Jesse joked in an attempt to lighten the mood. The girl, however, groaned in response, so Jesse decided to try and move the topic away from horse falling. "Uh… so are you the one that needed help?"

"Yes…" The girl said as she brought her hands back down to her sides. "Uh, actually no…" She then rubbed the back of her head. "Uh… sorta?"

"Wait, which is it? Do you need help or don't you?" Olivia asked as she walked up to the girl and stared at her questioningly.

"Well, it's more like I was asked to bring help," The strange girl said before shaking her head and tried to gain her bearings. "Ugh, okay, let me start over. My name is Malia and I'm a trader and part time map maker. I travel all over trading building blocks, supplies… you know, that kind of thing. Anyway, this morning I stopped by a village that I haven't been to in a month and apparently there's this… okay, they didn't tell me what it was, but someone or something invisible is taking villagers."

"What do you mean 'taking villagers'?" Lukas asked, his hand on in his chin as if he was in deep thought.

"Uh, I have no idea. I was told that the moment the sun sets, one of the villagers just… disappears."

"Wait, if they just 'disappeared', how do you know they were taken?" Jesse questioned, as she tried to get more information out of the trader.

"Uh… I don't know, I think someone saw something?" Malia said unsurely before scratching the back of her head. "I'm just the messenger, I didn't really investigate. I just know there were A LOT less villagers than there was month ago and that they asked me to go get the Order of the Stone."

"So how far away is this village?"

"Hm… I'd say it takes almost half a day to get there by horse. I arrived at the village at around dawn and they told me to hurry up and get the Order before anyone else was taken," The poncho wearing girl sighed and rubbed the side of her temples. "I would've liked to stay at the village a little longer before they rushed me out. I didn't sleep last night because I was on the road and I couldn't sleep and there was monsters and I was too freaked out to sleep and-"

"Well, I guess that settles that then," Jesse said, cutting off Malia before any more time was wasted. She turned toward her friends with a smile. "You guys ready to go save a village from an invisible monster?"

"Yeah, I'm down with saving some villagers. Count me in," Lukas responded with a nod.

"Heck yeah! It feels like it's been months since I went on a genuine adventure with you," Axel said, pumping his fist for emphasis. Then he blinked and scratched the back of his head, "Oh wait… it has been months."

"Unless you count the time we were kidnapped by that weird woman and was trapped in that obsidian prison," Olivia said before shrugging. "But I digress. Lead the way, Jesse! I'm ready to go save that village whenever you're ready!"

"Oh yeah! That's right, we did get kidnapped," Axel said before he frowned at the memory. "I wouldn't really count that as an adventure… we hardly even did anything and we barely saw any action other than Jesse fighting that old guy. We're totally due for some action ourselves!"

"I'm totally in too, even though I'm not good at fighting and I can't help with the invisible monster part," The strange poncho wearing girl added before rubbing the side of her arm shyly. "Well, seeing as you guys have never been to the village before, I thought I'd, um, take you guys there myself. You guys can ride my llamas while I lead you there," Malia said before squealing with delight. "I can't believe I just agreed to help the Order of the Stone. Oooh, I can't wait to tell people!"

"Well, that settles it then," Jesse said before she raised her fist in the air, pumped for a new adventure. "Pick a llama, guys! We'll head out as soon as everyone's ready!"

Everyone nodded in agreement before Jesse's three friends spread out and looked at their choices of llamas to ride. Jesse turned back to Malia with a friendly grin, "Thanks for helping us get to the village. We owe you one."

"Eep! Um, it's no big deal! I'm just really glad I met all five members of the Order of the…" The girl trailed off as she looked between the members of the Order of the Stone and mentally counted who was there. "Wait… wasn't there a fifth member?"

Jesse blinked and looked over at her friends. There was Olivia, Axel, and Lukas… but no Petra. As Jesse thought about it, she hadn't seen Petra all day and nobody had said anything about her. "Hey, has anyone seen Petra?" Jesse called out to her friends, wondering where her red-headed friend could be.

"Oh, uh, Petra went to the Nether," Lukas said, turning away from the orange and black saddled llamas he was staring at and looked at Jesse.

"The Nether?" Jesse's brow furrowed as she looked at Lukas in confusion. "We haven't even been back in our world very long and she already went to the Nether? I thought for sure she would have wanted a break from jumping through portals."

"Apparently, an old client asked for something that could only be found in the Nether," Lukas replied with a shrug and turned back to the llamas he was staring at. "She should be back by the time we return home."

"Well… alright, guess we'll go to the village without her," Jesse said with a shrug. If Petra was off doing her own thing, then Jesse had to hope that they can handle the invisible monster without her.

"Aw sweet, this one has a Creeper face on its saddle!" Axel said as he pointed to a llama with a green saddle before he hopped onto the llama's back with gusto. Taking the reins, he tried to urge the llama to move. "Hiya! Giddyup!" Axel cheered before noticed the llama wasn't moving. "Uh… mush? Onward? Open sesame?" He tried to encourage the llama to move at his command, but to no avail. "I think my llama is defective."

"Woah there, bucko. You can't ride llamas like a horse. I have to put a lead on one of them and the rest will follow," Malia said before pulling out a lead from her inventory and waving it in the air.

"Aw man," Axel groaned before slumping in his saddle, extremely disappointed he couldn't try any cool tricks on the llama before they headed out.

Jesse looked over all the llamas before she finally settled on one llama that had a similar color to her armor. Looking over toward her friends, Axel was looking bored and Olivia chose a red saddled llama and looked ready to leave at a moment's notice. Lukas, on the other hand, seemed to have had some trouble with the orange saddled llama.

"Easy there, big fellow. I just want to ride you," Lukas said as he tried to calm the llama down who seemed to be glaring at Lukas and making threatening noises. The llama just grunted in annoyance at the boy before making a gurgling sound and hacked a big wad of spit in Lukas' face, hitting him right in the eye and caused him to flinch. "OW, HEY! What did I ever do to you?!"

"Lukas, you okay?" Jesse called out to Lukas, wincing as she saw Lukas holding his eye as if he was in pain.

"Uh… I'm okay. I'm fine. My eye feels like it's on fire, but otherwise, I'm fine," Lukas replied back with a wavering voice as he took his hand off his eye and blinked it several times before putting his hand back on with a groan.

"Oooh… probably should have warned you about Timothy. He doesn't like people riding him when he has a full load in his chest," Malia said sympathetically before she saddled up on her horse and looked around at the other llamas before pointing at a pink saddled one with a smile. "Hey, try riding Blossom. She's super friendly."

Lukas looked at the pink saddled llama warily before shrugging as if he was resigned. "As long as she doesn't spit me in the face like the last one did, I'll take it." He sighed before he saddled up on the llama, who just let out a soft and friendly 'mwa' as if she was greeting Lukas.

"Okay, looks like everyone is ready," Malia said as she looked over at her new travel companions. Pulling the lead back out of her inventory, she slipped it onto the closest llama and almost immediately all the llamas in the general area rushed to stand behind the other until they formed one single line. Not having a say on where their llamas ended up in the line, Jesse's llama was in front of the line, Lukas' llama ended up in the middle and Axel and Olivia's were right on the end.

And with that, the Order of Stone was on their way to helping the village.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

Jesse was bored. Unbelievably bored, if she said so herself. With her friends too far away for her to talk to without resorting to yelling at them, Jesse decided to look at the scenery around her. However, after about an hour, Jesse grew bored at the ever changing scenery that she had to have seen a million times before and finally decided to look at her friends behind her to see how they were doing. Axel and Olivia seemed to be chatting away while Lukas was engrossed in writing in his journal. Jesse was tempted to look at what he was writing but decided against it; he was too far away for her to take a quick peek.

"Hey, uh… Jesse the leader?"

The voice snapped Jesse from her thoughts and she turned her head forward to see Malia looking curiously at her while still keeping a hold of the horse's reins. Jesse gave her a friendly smile before speaking, "Yeah, what's up?"

"Can I… ask a few questions?" Malia asked, looking rather uncertain if she should be asking the leader of the Order of the Stone anything.

"Sure! Ask anything you want," Jesse said as her grin grew even bigger, happy that she finally had something to do while they were traveling.

"Um… what's it like to be the leader of an awesome team of heroes?" The poncho wearing girl asked, looking rather excited. "It's probably the awesomest thing in the world, right?"

"Well, being leader is pretty awesome… but it's also hard work," Jesse said in a serious tone. "There's a lot of people looking up to you for when things go wrong and they need someone to save the day. So, I need to be ready for whatever comes at me so I can to help out my friends and other people."

"Wow, that's so noble. You're so awesome," Malia said, completely starstruck. "Okay, question number two. What would you say the Order of the Stone's all-time favorite food is?"

"Cake. No debate about it, I'm pretty sure all my friends love cake."

The strange girl made a mental note to donate all of her cakes to the Order of the Stone before she nodded and broke into a smile. "Okay, third question. It's about something that guy… uh, Linus said."

Jesse blinked in confusion for a second, unsure who Linus was before she realized Malia's mistake. "Ah, his name is Lukas. Not Linus."

Malia looked confused before she glanced behind Jesse to stare at Lukas for a moment. "Really? 'Cause I could have sworn that was his name. He even looks like a Linus."

"No, I'm pretty sure Lukas looks like… well, Lukas. Anyway, what are you curious about?" Jesse said in an attempt to get back on topic.

"Ah, right. Well, Li… uh, Lukas said that Petra went to the Nether for a client, right?"

"Yeah… where are you going with this?" Jesse questioned, confusion evident in her tone of voice.

"Well, I'm a trader. Part of my job is to know who is trading what and for what price. As far as I'm aware, Petra tended to deal on the… darker side of trading. You know, stuff hard to get from the Nether. Ghast Tears, Wither Skulls… shady stuff," Malia said before she shrugged. "Anyway, word around the jungle vine says that Petra left the trading business months ago. Dunno the exact details as to why, though."

Jesse's eyes widened at this new bit of information. Why hadn't she heard of this from Petra herself? "Wait, really?"

"Yeah, that's why I was a little curious about what Lukas said. If she got back into the trading business, I'm interested in doing some business with her," Malia said before breaking into another excited grin. "I would love to get my hands on some blaze rods. People would love to craft some brewing stands with those. " The trader then heard her horse neigh at her before she turned around and made her horse weave around a few trees before she crashed into them. "Ooh, looks like I need to focus on the road again. Anyway, thanks for answering my questions! Really appreciate it!" Malia called out over her shoulder before she put all her attention on getting the Order of the Stone to the village before nightfall.

"You're welcome," Jesse said before her thoughts drifted to what Malia had said. Did Petra quit the trading business because of what happened with Ivor? Maybe Petra quit because she was too busy with the Order of the Stone to focus on trading? Jesse decided she'd ask Petra about the details when she got the chance.

Just like that, Jesse had nothing else to do and she was bored yet again. She grumbled for a moment before she stared at the back of the trader's head.

"… Hey, Malia?"

"Yes?"

"Are we there yet?"

 _ **-MCSM-**_

"… Anyway, so this guy tried to hit me with this block of TNT but, like the awesome King I am, I avoided that thing like a boss and that thing went BWOOOM right behind me. It was pretty awesome," Axel said, regaling Olivia with tales from his last trip to Boom Town… or at least, he was trying to.

"Uh-huh," Olivia mumbled, staring at the trees as they passed by them.

Axel raised an eyebrow, confused as to why Olivia seemed distracted and not more focused on his awesome story. "Hey, you listening?"

"Yeah, you ran into a guy in Boom Town, he threw TNT at you and you avoided it," Olivia recounted as she still stared at the trees passing by.

Axel blinked a few times in surprise and rubbed the back of his head. "Okay, maybe you are listening," Axel said, still confused at Olivia's distant attitude. He decided to change topics to see if he could get Olivia's mind off… whatever had her preoccupied. "So… have you told Jesse about that thing yet?"

Olivia sighed heavily as she glanced back at Axel. "No… not yet."

"What? Aw, come on, why not? I would have told her the moment she got back to our world."

Olivia just looked at the passing trees as she absent mindedly petted the llama's fur. "I guess I'm just… having second thoughts to it… Maybe I shouldn't-"

"WHAT?" Axel practically yelled out and almost fell off his llama in shock. "Why would you be having second thoughts about THAT? I would've thought you'd jump at the chance! I mean, you'd be-"

"Yeah, well, maybe I thought about it harder than you would!" Olivia snapped defensively at Axel, without even thinking. She turned around and her face softened as she noticed the hurt look on Axel's face, the guilt filling her insides. "I'm really sorry, Axel. It's just I've been feeling a bit pressured and I still don't know what I should do. I just don't think I should tell Jesse yet." She sighed and looked back at the passing trees. "Does that make me a bad person?"

"What? Now you're just talking crazy talk. Keeping THAT a secret definitely does not mean you're a bad person. Besides, you're still one of the awesomest people I know," Axel said, breaking into the biggest grin he could possibly manage in an attempt to cheer his friend up.

It had worked because Olivia had let out a sigh before she smiled softly. "Thanks Axel. I needed that." She paused for a moment before turning to him. "Promise to keep it a secret until I get the courage to tell Jesse?"

"Yep, I'll keep my lips sealed tighter than a locked chest," Axel said before he held out his fist towards Olivia. "Promise Pound!"

Olivia stared at the fist in confusion before she stared at Axel with an eyebrow raised. "Promise Pound?"

Axel's smile faltered for a moment and he rubbed the back of his head. "Uh… it's like a fist bump except we just made a promise so it'd be a Promise Pound."

Olivia considered this for a moment before she raised her fist in the air and bumped Axel's fist. "Alright, Promise Pound." After she let her hand drop, she looked up at Axel curiously. "Now, weren't you saying something about avoiding TNT?"

Axel's grin was back on his face and he raised his hand in the air. "Oh yeah, almost thought I'd die for a moment there! So anyway, after I avoided the TNT, I ducked behind a building and pulled out a flint and steel…"

…

Unbeknownst to the two friends chatting away, a certain blonde guy had heard every word as he continued to write in his journal…

 ** _-MCSM-_**

After what felt like forever to Jesse, the sight of the village as the caravan left the forest made Jesse feel relieved and she could feel her boredom disappear into nothingness.

The village wasn't any spectacular; it was just a bunch of houses made from oak wood and planks. There were a few farms dotted around the village, but they looked rather unkempt with hardly any food growing at all. Not a single villager was out onto the street, almost like it was a ghost town.

"Where is everybody?" Jesse asked as she and her friends got off the llamas they were riding as soon as the caravan had stopped. Jesse looked over at the horizon and saw that the sun was close to setting. "The sun hasn't even begun to set yet."

"All the villagers are really spooked about this whole invisible-monster-taking-villagers-the-moment-it's-night thing. So I guess they're going in their houses a lot earlier. Maybe you'll talk to them in the morning," Malia said, as she began to usher her llamas into a stable that was built onto the side of a house. "Now, if you need me, I'm going to go hide with my llamas."

"You're not going to help us with this monster?" Olivia asked as she saw the trader lead her llamas to a bunch of hay bales which they began to nibble at earnestly.

"I don't know how much help I'd be in the first place. I'm not the best fighter in the world and I'd probably just get in the way," She shrugged and walked into the stable and closed the gate behind her as soon as all the llamas (plus one horse) was inside. "I wish you guys the best of luck, though. I mean, you're the Order of Stone! You guys can probably do anything you set your mind to." With that, she walked deeper into the stable and was out of sight.

Jesse just shrugged as she turned to her friends. "Well, she's right about one thing: we can do anything we set our minds to. So let's figure out how we're gonna stop this invisible whatever-it-is and keep it from kidnapping anymore villagers.

"I can set up some redstone traps around the houses and see if I can trap it," Olivia said as she pulled out some redstone and pistons.

"I can climb up onto one of the house's roofs and see if I can scout out anything," Lukas added as he pulled out a bow and arrow. "If I see any floating villagers try and leave the village, I'll let you guys know."

"And I'll… uh…" Axel paused and rubbed the back of his head, "I'm actually not sure what I can do."

"Axel, you and me will patrol around town and see if we can see or hear anything suspicious." Jesse put her hands on her hips and nodded. "Okay, team; we don't have a lot of time. First, let's help Olivia with her redstone traps and then get into position. Sunset is probably going to happen any moment now and we need to get ready." Jesse held her hand in the air. "Order of the Stone; move out!"

And with that, the team prepared for the inevitable battle.

* * *

 **A/N: You smell that? THAT'S THE SMELL OF A TOUGH BATTLE AHEAD!**

 **... And by tough battle, I mean with me trying to write out a long fight scene. Well, I guess it depends on a person's definition of long, but I digress.**

 **ANYWAY, I got a new Beta Reader! And that person is... drumroll please... Ariza Luca, that one person who wrote a bunch of MCSM stories that I'll probably read eventually. I just gotta find the time to read a 176 chapter story.**

 **Yeeeaaaahhh, this story is not going to be that long... maybe fifty chapters? Maybe less? Maybe more? I have no idea.  
**

 **I DO know that this story will have five episodes with episode five being the longest because OF ALL THE THINGS THAT'LL HAPPEN. But I'm getting waaaay ahead of myself.**

 **ANYWAY, this chapter introduces an OC of mine. Good ol' Malia... who I literally just made at first just to be a ride for the Order of the Stone. But then I developed her a lot and now she has more of a role in the story, so that's gonna be fun! It's not a major role, but a role nonetheless.**

 **ANYWAY AGAIN, thanks for the nice words about the story. It means a lot and makes me all nice and warm inside. :3**

 **ALSO... literally one person voted on the poll on my profile which is a little... disheartening. But I will thank the one person that voted!**

 **The poll will still be open for a few chapters so GO VOTE and stuff.**

 **Mmm, if not a lot of people vote, I'll probably stop the poll thing. Oh well...**

 **AND WITH THAT I bid thee adieu.**


	4. Episode 1: Chapter 3

**CHAPTER THREE**

The moment the sun had begun to set, the Order of the Stone was prepared - as much as they could be - and had gotten into position. Jesse and Axel were walking the streets of the village and had their eyes peeled for anything suspicious. Olivia and Lukas had climbed up onto the roofs of the houses and had their bows and arrows prepared as they scanned the area with their eyes. They had prepared ladders on the sides of the houses just in case they had to rush down to the ground in a hurry.

Overall, with the traps set and everyone into position, the only thing left to do was to wait for whatever was kidnapping villagers.

Jesse looked out towards the sun as she saw it slowly disappear on the horizon. The sun had officially set and Jesse could feel herself tense as she held the sword at her side as she slowly patrolled the streets, looking around carefully for any sign of monsters, disturbances, or anything suspicious.

Axel, who was walking with her, groaned in annoyance as he crossed his arms. "Okay, the sun has set and nothing is happening. Is this thing gonna show up or what?"

Jesse just sighed as she shook her head and looked at her large friend, "Axel, it hasn't been that long. I mean, I'd get if you complained in about an hour or so, but it hasn't even been five minutes."

"Aw, I don't wanna wait all night for this invisible monster or whatever. It probably won't even show up because we're so awesome and cool-looking," Axel said before he chuckled, "Might even be too scared to show its invisible face around."

Jesse put her hand on her chin as she considered Axel's words for a moment before shrugging. "While it is true we're awesome, I don't think it'll be scared of us. No way it'll be that easy," Jesse mumbled the last sentence under her breath as she stared out into the dark forest that was next to the village.

Axel just shrugged and rubbed the back of his head, "Yeah, well, either way we'll kick this thing's butt. After all, we're-"

 _*CRUNCH*_

The unexpected sound caused the two friends to flail only for a moment before they got into an attack formation. Axel held out his fists as he prepared to punch anything that dared showed its face around him while Jesse had her diamond sword raised and ready to stab anything that looked threatening. They looked around for anything that made the noise…

… Until their eyes rested on a couple sheep chewing on some grass not too far away. One of the sheep looked up at the two friends and let out a soft 'baa' before returning to its meal.

Jesse just groaned as she and Axel let their guard down and lowered their weapons. "Okay, it's official. We're wired tighter than a redstone trap."

"Great, and here I was expecting an epic showdown," Axel grumbled before he took a few steps towards the sheep and used his hands in a shooing motion. "Go on, get out of here!"

The sheep, being such simple minded creatures, lifted their heads to stare at Axel for a moment before letting out another soft 'baa' and returned to their grass eating.

Axel took several more steps toward the sheep, trying to look as menacing as possible to the sheep. "I said, get out of… here…" Axel trailed off as he turned his head and looked behind the house that he had found himself standing next to. "Uh, Jesse?"

"Yeah?" Jesse asked, worry in her tone of voice. She had a bad feeling and didn't like where it was going.

"Do villager houses normally have a hole in the back?"

Jesse's eyes widened at Axel's question and rushed over to the back of the house to see if what Axel said was true. Behind the house was a hole two blocks tall made in the center of an oak wood plank wall. It was just large enough for a person to slip inside unnoticed and hidden away so that the Order of the Stone wouldn't be able to spot it easily. If it hadn't been for the sheep, Jesse and Axel would have never discovered it.

Jesse raised a finger to her lips to signal Axel to be quiet as she pulled her diamond sword out and sidled up against the wall before she peeked inside the hole to see if there was anything she could see. All she could see was a lit torch and several bookcases but she couldn't see any villagers or anything else suspicious. Jesse then decided to slowly tip-toe in. She made a hand motion to Axel to indicate that she would sneak in and he nodded in understanding. Slowly, she stepped inside the hole and looked around the room to see if there was anything.

Right in the middle of the room was a librarian villager unconscious on the floor and an empty bottle floating in mid-air. There was a gasping sound before it turned into a grunt as the empty bottle disappeared and the villager was lifted into the air by an invisible force.

"Hey, you let him go!" Jesse called out to the invisible being before she pointed her sword at it threateningly.

The invisible kidnapper ignored Jesse as it ran towards the door, opened it, and ran outside. Jesse groaned in annoyance before she ran and yelled after it. "Get back here!"

The moment the invisible force ran outside with the villager, Olivia spotted the floating villager and pointed her bow and arrow underneath the villager. "Lukas, we got a floating villager at 5'o clock!" She called out to her friend who was standing on top of a nearby roof.

"Right!" Lukas nodded and pointed his own bow and arrow below the floating villager. Together, the two friends released their arrows and let them fly towards the invisible force, being careful not to kill the villager in the process.

While one of the arrows missed and hit one of the villager's houses, the other arrow had hit the invisible being on the lower part of their body (presumably their waist) causing the being to grunt in pain. This caused them to stall for a moment before running away again, keeping out of Jesse's reach as she followed.

"Okay, I need to go activate the traps! Lukas, try and see if you can hit more arrows into that thing!" Olivia called out to her friend who nodded in response as he pulled back another arrow for the bow. Then, she quickly headed toward the ladder and slid down as fast as she could.

As Jesse continued to chase the invisible being and Lukas continued to fire more arrows, Axel had quickly ran behind the houses in order to try and cut off the invisible force. After making sure he was far enough ahead of the invisible kidnapper, Axel turned the corner in an attempt to cut them off. "Ha, got you now!" He called out as he tried to grab where he saw the arrow, but the invisible being was one step ahead of him.

The invisible kidnapper jumped away from Axel just as he was making a grab for them, almost as if they had taken a Potion of Leaping. Instead of Axel grabbing the invisible being, they had jumped and landed on top of Axel's head. Then, using Axel's head as a spring board, jumped away from Axel as he felt like he was being kicked in the head.

"Ow! Did it just kick me?" Axel grumbled and rubbed the back of his head and turned around and glared at them. "Oh, you're going to get it now!" With renewed determination, Axel ran after the kidnapper with Jesse not too far behind.

The invisible being, with the villager still sleeping away above their head, was almost close enough to the exit of the village that they could practically taste it. However, the moment they heard the sounds of pistons, they skidded to a halt and watched a massive wall of stone appear from the ground and continued upward until it was five blocks high. Just high enough that the invisible kidnapper couldn't jump over it. Grumbling, the invisible being changed directions and attempted to run for another exit before Jesse and Axel could get too close to them.

Poking her head out of from between two houses, Olivia saw the floating villager stop in front of the wall she had activated and saw them change directions and began to run towards where she was hiding. Putting her hand on a lever, she waited until the floating villager was in just the right spot before she pulled it down.

Just as the invisible kidnapper was running through the streets, a massive hole opened up in the ground and both the invisible being and the still sleeping villager fell into the depths. Olivia, relieved that the plan seemed to have worked, sighed in relief and walked out of the small alley between the houses to take a look down the hole that her and her friends dug earlier.

Jesse and Axel's running came to a halt in front of the hole, panting to catch their breaths. Axel looked down the hole with a grin and put his hands on his hips. "Hah! I'd like to see that thing get out of this one."

Jesse peeked down the hole herself to see if she could see any sign of the kidnapped villager, but the hole was too dark to see properly. Jesse put a hand to her chin as she considered their next course of action. "Okay, now that we've trapped the kidnapper, let's get the villager out of the hole and get him somewhere safe. After that, we'll figure out who this mystery invisible kidnapper really is. Now, le-"

What happened next caught the three friends off guard.

There was a soft sound of glass breaking down in the hole, and the next thing Jesse knew, there was a rather tall tower of birch wood logs that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. On top the tower of logs was the kidnapped villager being held by the invisible being, who still had the arrow still stuck in their side.

With a grunt, the invisible being tossed the still sleeping villager behind Olivia. The villager landed on the ground with a thud, but he continued to sleep away, completely blissful to what was going on around him. Then, the invisible force pulled out two white potions from their inventory and raised them in the air.

Jesse, who was prepared to attack the invisible being when it jumped down, saw the potions floating in the air and her eyes widened in shock. "Look out! That thing has potions!" Jesse called out to her friends as she prepared herself to dodge at a moment's notice.

But it was too late. The moment the words left Jesse's mouth, the invisible being threw the potions towards Axel and Olivia, hitting them on the head. The moment it hit them, they were surrounded by many cobwebs, constricting their movements.

"Woah, what? Can potions even do this?" Axel complained as he tried to struggle out of the cobwebs.

As soon as the potions were thrown, the invisible being jumped down from the tower, quickly ran behind the now constricted Olivia and grabbed the sleeping villager before making another run for it.

"Jesse, go after them! You can't let that thing get away!" Olivia called out to her friend who hesitated for a moment as she considered getting her friends out of the cobwebs. At Olivia's words, Jesse nodded before taking off after the invisible being, leaving behind her trapped friends.

"Hey, uh, Olivia? You wouldn't happen to have a sword, do you? I, uh… kinda don't have one," Axel asked as he slowly tried to make his way out of the cobwebs.

Olivia just sighed as she tried to quickly make her way through the cobwebs herself. "No… didn't think I'd end up in a sticky situation," She said, wincing at her unintentional pun. Olivia mentally scolded herself; she should have just stayed where all the levers for the traps were and waited until Axel and Jesse had checked their pitfall trap. But no, she thought that the trap had worked and had let her guard down.

As Olivia continued to berate herself in her mind as she continued to make her way out of the cobwebs, she hoped that Jesse was able to save the villager in time.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

Jesse ran as fast as her legs could go as she continued on the trail of the invisible being. The mysterious kidnapper was pretty fast (despite carrying a villager), but Jesse was able to stay right on their tail. Jesse looked ahead of the invisible kidnapper and saw that it was trying to go out the other exit from the village and into the forest. She frowned; if the invisible kidnapper went into the forest, then they could easily try and lose her, especially if they knew the forest around the village pretty well. Jesse tried to go through her list of options…

Until a certain blonde friend jumped from a nearby rooftop and landed on top of the sleeping villager and invisible kidnapper, causing them to fall to the ground with a thud.

"What the-? Lukas?" Jesse skidded to a halt and stared wide eyed at her friend. Out of all the ways to take out the invisible kidnapper, jumping off a rooftop and landing on top of them was not what she imagined.

"Woah… I can't believe that actually worked," Lukas muttered in awe as he shook his head and tried to gain his bearings from the fall. The moment he saw the kidnapper and Jesse running towards where he was, he considered climbing down the ladder and try to cut off the invisible being but discarded that thought when he realized there was no time. The next best thing was to jump down off the rooftop and try to stop the kidnapper. He had honestly expected to miss the kidnapper entirely.

"Wow… way to go Lukas!" Jesse praised her friend as she walked over to the side of villager to see if the librarian was okay. Sure enough, the librarian villager seemed to be fine, despite him still being unconscious. As she tried to lift the villager up to see if the invisible kidnapper was at the bottom of the pile, she looked up at her blonde friend and smirked, "So, did you have a soft landing?"

"Actually, it was a lot softer than I thought it would be," Lukas said before he looked down at the villager he was on top of and then back at Jesse with an eyebrow raised, "Should I get off the villager now or…?"

"No, just stay there. I'm just checking to see if our mysterious kidnapper is under…" Jesse began to say before she trailed off as her eyes widened when she saw the arrow laying on the ground underneath the villager.

Not floating in midair stuck in the kidnapper.

On the ground… discarded.

Oh no.

"The kidnapper is still around!" Jesse yelled out before taking out her diamond sword and scanned the area with her eyes, on high alert.

"What?!" Lukas quickly got off the sleeping librarian and pulled out his iron sword and looked around frantically. "I could have sworn I landed on the villager _and_ the kidnapper!"

"This kidnapper is good. Really good…" Jesse mumbled to herself before she turned to Lukas, "Just keep on your guard."

Before Lukas could say anything, he felt someone punch him in his right eye and pushed him to the ground. Lukas flinched and groaned as he held his closed eye in pain, "Ugh… that hurt worse than the llama."

"Lukas!" Jesse called out to her friend before she swung the sword to where she thought the invisible kidnapper was. Jesse stopped her sword mid-swing when the invisible being picked up the unconscious villager from the ground and held it out in front of themselves as a shield. Jesse practically growled at the kidnapper, "Now that's just low."

The invisible jerk didn't respond as they slowly backed away from Jesse, who glared at them with her sword still drawn and ready to attack the moment she saw an opening. Then, the invisible kidnapper slowly pulled out a purple potion from their inventory and held it in their invisible hand.

Jesse glanced at her blonde friend and noticed that he was getting up off the ground and picking his sword up that he had dropped when the kidnapper shoved him to the ground. Jesse looked back to where she thought the kidnapper's head was and broke into a cocky smirk. "What? You don't have a sword? What's a small potion like that going to do to me?" She taunted the invisible being. If she could just aggravate the kidnapper into attacking her, then she would distract them long enough so Lukas could sneak up on the invisible jerk and stab them.

To her surprise, the invisible kidnapper just chuckled at her attempts to egg them on and, to even more surprise, said something for the first time since Jesse had met them…

"Nice try, but this isn't for you," The kidnapper said in a deep voice that sounded like it belonged to a man.

With a toss, the invisible jerk threw the potion, not at Jesse, but at Lukas as he began to walk over to the kidnapper, hitting him in the face.

Suddenly, from the ground, zombies began to sprout out from the ground and grabbed onto Lukas, keeping him in place as the slowly began to raise themselves from the dirt blocks.

"Ahhh! What the heck is happening?!" Lukas yelped as he tried to stab one of the zombies rising from the ground, who only grunted from the stabs as it continued to rise from the dirt.

"Lukas!" Jesse called out and was about to run over and help him fend off the zombies but noticed the invisible kidnapper lift the villager over their head and began to back away.

"So, what is it going to be? Save your dear friend from the zombies or chase after me and go into the forest? Choose wisely…" The invisible jerk said in a serious tone before he began to run towards the exit of the village.

Jesse tried to think things through in her head as fast as she could. Should she chase after the kidnapper and try and rescue the villager or should she save her friend from being killed by zombies?

She didn't even have to think hard about her choice.

"I'm coming, Lukas!" She called out to her blonde friend before running up to him and began to swing her diamond sword at the zombies as they tried to climb out of the blocks they spawned in.

Together, both Jesse and Lukas defeated the zombies before they could exit the blocks and disappeared into puffs of smoke, leaving only rotten flesh behind. The two friends began to pant, exhausted from their small battle and looked at each other in relief.

"Thanks, Jesse," Lukas panted as he wiped his forehead with his arm and breathed a sigh of relief. "For a moment there, I thought I was zombie food."

"Hey, as long as I'm around, there's no way you'll be zombie food… or any kind of food, for that matter," Jesse chuckled before looking towards the exit to the village and frowned. "I'm a little bummed about letting that kidnapper get away, though. That poor villager…"

Lukas looked at Jesse sympathetically and was about to say something before he heard two familiar voices calling out to them.

"Hey, Jesse! Lukas!" Axel called out to them as he ran to where they were before grinding to a halt. "So, what happened? Did you get that jerky kidnapper?"

Olivia, who was right behind Axel, looked around them before she frowned and looked at Jesse sadly, "Don't tell me…"

Jesse and Lukas looked at each other before turning to their friends and began to explain what had transpired moments ago.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

The mission ended in failure.

And the Order of the Stone was completely bummed about it.

The four friends trudged their way towards a building that was built next to stable where Malia was sleeping. It had a sign above the door that read 'Adventurer's Inn – Humans Welcome' with a smiley face written underneath the words. It wasn't the most luxurious place to stay at; it was only just one room with a few windows and several beds pushed up against the wall with the occasional potted flower on a wood block next to the head of the beds.

Still, after a long day of traveling and chasing after a kidnapper, the Order of the Stone didn't care what the place looked like; just as long as it was a place to sleep for the rest of the night.

(Lukas, however, muttered under his breath how he wanted to redesign the whole place from top to bottom when he got the chance.)

After deciding who slept in which bed (girls on the right side of the room and guys on the left), the Order of Stone went under the covers and prepared themselves for a good sleep after they talked about what they planned to do the next day. The four friends decided to talk to the villagers first thing in the morning and work on their plan to take out the kidnapper from there.

As the rest of the Order of the Stone went to sleep, Jesse couldn't help but stay awake and stare at the ceiling. Her mind was going through the events that had happened not that long ago in order to try and find a better way to deal with the kidnapper. The only things she gathered about the kidnapper was that he was man (judging from the sound of his voice), he was a potion user, and he was extremely agile and strong.

Jesse frowned as she tried to think of a new plan to capture the kidnapper and save the villagers, but with little success. With each new plan she tried to think up, all she could imagine was the invisible jerk somehow getting out of their grasp and escaping into the forest again. Maybe she had to come at it at a different angle…

Maybe, instead of trying to capture the kidnapper, the Order of the Stone could try to find where the mystery jerk was taking the villagers? Possibly, but how? She had no idea where the kidnapper would even take the villagers. If Jesse could just find even the tiniest hint of a lead…

Suddenly, Jesse noticed a light appearing in the corner of her eye. Turning to her side, she saw Lukas sitting up in his bed and took out a torch from his inventory and put it on the wall next to him. Was he having problems sleeping?

"Hey, Lukas? Having trouble sleeping?" She whispered loudly to him, trying her best not to wake up Axel or Olivia.

Surprised, Lukas looked over at Jesse and raised an eyebrow questioningly, "Jesse? I thought you were asleep… or did I wake you when I brought the torch out?"

"No, no, I was already awake," Jesse whispered loudly as she used her elbow to prop herself up on the bed as she looked at him. "I was just thinking about what happened today and what we could do to get that invisible jerk."

"Ah, I see," Lukas whispered back before he pulled out his journal from his inventory and showed it to her. "I was thinking about writing about what happened today. You know, while it's still fresh in my memory," He said before he winced and put a hand on his eye, "Though, maybe I should leave out the part where I got punched in the face. Hard."

Jesse looked at her friend sympathetically. "Does your eye still hurt?"

"Yeah, but not as bad as it was. I'll probably wake up with a black eye tomorrow, though," He whispered before he grinned, "But, hey, if that's the worst thing that happens to me on this adventure, then I'll be doing great."

"That's the spirit," Jesse said, pleased that her blonde friend was looking on the bright side. "Though, I'm surprised you aren't counting the whole 'zombies-rising-from-the-ground-and-about-to-eat-you' thing as the worst thing that happened to you."

"True, but you were right there. I knew you wouldn't let me down…" Lukas whispered before he trailed off, his eyes growing distant and his face became unreadable.

Jesse blinked, confused about her friend's mood change. "Um… are you alright? Is something wrong?"

"Hm?" Lukas mumbled before he looked at Jesse and nodded. "Uh, yeah… I'm fine. I just… have a lot on my mind right now."

"Do you need to talk about it?" Jesse asked, concern for her friend evident on her face.

"No, I don't really have anything to talk about," Lukas replied before he looked out the window and then looked back at Jesse. "Hey, it's getting late. Maybe we should get some sleep before morning comes."

Taking that as a sign that her blonde friend didn't want to talk anymore, Jesse nodded and smiled softly at her friend. "Well… alright. See you in the morning, then."

"Yeah… good night, Jesse," Lukas whispered to her. Before Jesse laid back down on her bed, Lukas had one more thing to say: "And… thanks… for everything."

Not thinking too hard about what her friend said, Jesse just nodded before laying back down and turned to face the wall. Eventually, her mind quieted down and she drifted off to sleep.

Lukas, on the other hand, waited a few moments to make sure Jesse didn't have anything else to say. Then, he slipped his journal back into his inventory before pulling out his other journal, the one that had several papers sticking out of it.

With a sigh, he pulled out his quill pen and began to write in it…

* * *

 **A/N: Did I say fight scene last chapter? I think I meant chase scene. With the Benny Hill theme playing in the background. xD**

 **Anyway, awwww, the Order of the Stone lost against the invisible man. Oh well, there's always next time. ;3**

 **Fun Fact: I thought about doing a 'falling for you' joke with Lukas and Jesse and him falling off the roof, but decided against it. I'm trying to make their conversations seem natural and not TOO awkward, ya know? xD**

 **Anywho, what is the Order of the Stone going to do now? What'll happen in the next chapter? WHAT IS LUKAS WRITING IN HIS JOURNAL?**

 ***shrugs* Dunno, but I guess we'll find out. :3**

 **On another note, there's a tie in the poll. I wish I could say I was surprised, BUT...**

 **Looks like I have to rely on the ancient method of... COIN FLIPPING.**

 **I'll wait a bit and see if anyone else votes. But if not, I'll have it closed by the time the next chapter comes out.**

 **Until next time... FAREWELL!**


	5. Episode 1: Chapter 4

**CHAPTER FOUR**

The sun shone down on the world as creatures of many shapes and sizes started to stir from their slumber and began to wake up to a new day. From the sun that was peeking out from behind the horizon to the animals going about their morning business, the chase from the night before seemed to be a like distant memory.

Despite the new morning, the Order of the Stone was still asleep in their beds. Axel was snoring up a storm as he was splayed out on the bed that he barely fit on. Olivia was curled up on the bed and in a deep sleep. Jesse was on her side facing the wall, mumbling about a certain pig as she enjoyed the land of dreams. Lukas was mumbling in his sleep as his journal covered his face and his quill pen discarded on the side of the bed, forgotten when he drifted off to sleep.

All in all, the Order of the Stone was enjoying a nice, peaceful sleep at the start of the day.

… For about five seconds.

"Good morning, Order of the Stone!" The door slammed open as a familiar poncho wearing girl stepped through, looking at the sleeping heroes eagerly and practically bouncing in her steps.

Startled by the sudden noise, most of the Order of the Stone woke up with a start. Axel fell out of bed screaming in shock, Olivia shot up and looked around expecting to see a monster, and Jesse just groaned and turned around to stare at Malia sleepily. The only one who didn't wake up was Lukas, who was still sleeping away.

"Morning already?" Jesse mumbled and yawned, looking at Malia with a raised eyebrow. "Ever heard of knocking?"

"Whoops, sorry about that! It's just that I woke up this morning and I was wondering what happened last night with the kidnapper and I started thinking about and I got all excited and-" Malia talked rapidly while she bounced up and down excitedly before she stopped and squealed in excitement, "I just REALLY want to know how you guys defeated the kidnapper and saved the village!"

"Mmm, ugh, what's that loud screeching noise?" Lukas groaned as he sat up from his bed, letting his journal hit the floor as he held his head in pain as he felt a headache coming on.

"I was just-" Malia was about to say before she stared at Lukas and her eyes widened. "Holy nether star, you look terri- uh, I mean… looking… good? Uh, I mean, great? Uh, maybe fantastic? Yeah, sure, I'll go with that," Malia said before she winced at the sight of him.

Lukas was right; he did wake up with a black eye and it was rather swollen and painful to look at. It also didn't help that he had bags under his eyes and his blonde hair was sticking up in all directions. His friends also looked at his black eye and winced, including Axel once he picked himself off the ground.

"Woah, Lukas, are you okay?" Olivia asked as she got up off her bed and looked at her friend. "It looks like you got kicked in the face by a horse. A very angry horse, at that," she said before she turned away so she didn't have to look at it anymore.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just throbbing… painfully," Lukas groaned as he put a hand on his black eye but then flinched at his own touch. It probably didn't help he had his journal laying on his face for most of the night.

"Hmm… I can get you an ice block to put on that," Malia said before she turned to Jesse with a wide, excited grin, "But more importantly: how did it go last night?"

Jesse sighed as she got off her bed and rubbed the back of head sheepishly, "Uh well… not great. The kidnapper kind of left with the villager."

Malia blinked, slowly processing Jesse's words before she looked at Jesse confused, "Wait, you mean, that kidnapper actually defeated the Order of the Stone? THE Order of the Stone?" She exclaimed, beginning to panic. If the Order of the Stone lost to an invisible kidnapper, then what did it say about the kidnapper's skill level? "How in the Nether could that have happened? You guys are awesome!"

"Well, I wouldn't say he defeated us. It's more like he distracted us long enough to escape with the villager," Jesse explained before she put her hands on her hips and smiled confidently, "But we'll find him. Are the villagers awake yet? We'd like to talk to them."

Calming down at the sight of the leader's confidence, Malia smiled back and nodded, "Yep! Everybody woke up not that long ago. Even let my llamas out of the stable to stretch their legs," She said before she turned to leave. "I'll go let the villagers know that you guys want to talk to them." And with that, Malia left the inn.

It was silent for a moment before Axel spoke up, "Okay, but did she HAVE to come barging in and wake us up like that? I was having an awesome dream with Creepers and TNT and people not yelling loudly at me."

Jesse sighed, recalling her own dream she was having before pushing that thought aside. She had a job to do. "Okay, guys, let's go talk to those villagers," Jesse said as she smiled at her friends.

"Think they'll give us any leads on the kidnapper?" Olivia asked.

"Guess we'll find out," Jesse replied, "Besides, someone's gotta know something. I'm sure the villagers will tell us all we need to know."

 ** _-MCSM-_**

Jesse wasn't aware that a villager's stare would be so… creepy.

The moment the Order of the Stone stepped outside, they were surrounded by the entire town of villagers, possibly around fifteen in all. They wore many different cloaks and there were a few children villagers that were hiding behind the adults. They didn't even say anything to the four friends, they just simply… stared and made the occasional hmm'ing sound.

"Is it normal for villagers to stare at people like they did something to annoy them?" Lukas whispered to the others as he glanced at a villager who seemed to be staring at his very soul, causing him to shiver.

"Uh," Jesse mumbled, unsure how to answer before she cleared her throat and spoke loudly enough so that all the villagers would hear, "Hello people of… uh…" Jesse paused before she looked at Malia questioningly. "Uh… what was this village named again?"

"Hm?" Malia stared at Jesse for a moment before she shrugged her shoulders. "Yeah, I have no idea what they call this place."

Jesse stared at her in shock, "Seriously? You've been here before!"

"Yeah, and they never told me the name of the village," Malia replied before she rubbed the back of her head with a sigh, "They never tell me a lot of things."

Jesse grumbled under her breath; this was going a lot more difficult than she had previously thought. Still, she cleared her throat again and began speaking to the crowd. "Anyway, people of… this small village, I am one of the members of the Order of the Stone and we have come to this village because we have received word that there has been several kidnappings by a mysterious being. Last night, we had encountered the kidnapper but, due to circumstances beyond our control, he escaped his capture. If there is ANYONE out there that has information about the kidnapper or where he has taken his victims, please let us know. Any leads that you give us will be graciously appreciated," Jesse said as she smiled at the crowd and mentally patted herself on the back. She sounded so serious and professional! She was getting really good at the whole 'leader' thing, if she said so herself.

The villagers simply stared at her while a few villagers in the back of the crowd mumbled to themselves.

Jesse blinked, surprised by the reaction of the crowd. "Um… does nobody have any information?"

The villagers said nothing and stared.

Jesse began to sweat under the intense stares. "Um… anything at all?"

Stare.

Axel whistled before whispering to Jesse, "Wow, tough crowd."

Jesse just glared at the crowd as she could feel her eye twitch. She was honestly starting to get a little annoyed. "Okay, seriously, throw a wolf a bone here! That kidnapper is just going to keep coming back and, unless we figure out all of his tricks which could take DAYS for all I know, he is going to keep coming back and taking you guys until there is none of you left and I don't think that's what you guys want. So, if anyone has ANY-"

"I believe I have some information on who might want to kidnap us," Came a voice from the crowd.

Jesse stopped mid-rant and looked toward the crowd, "Uh… who said that?"

Almost immediately, the crowd of villagers parted down the middle until there was only a single white cloaked villager standing in the middle with a small brown cloaked villager child hiding behind him. He began walking forward and stopped right in front of Jesse before looking her up and down as if he was judging her. Then with a shrug, he began to speak, "I do believe I said that. I am the leader of this village or, as you humans call leaders of villages, the 'mayor'. Now-"

"Hi Carter!" Malia called happily as she waved at the villager.

With an annoyed grunt, he glared at Malia and his nostrils flared angrily, "I have told you time and time again that my name is NOT Carter."

Malia shrugged before she replied, "Yeah, but what else am I supposed to call you? You won't tell me if you have a name or not and I don't want to call you something like 'Villager #345'. I feel like Carter is a good name for you." She ended with a smile, ignoring the annoyed look on the villager's face.

'Carter' merely grumbled before turning away, "Ugh, it's not worth arguing with you." Carter's eyes drifted back towards Jesse and continued speaking, "As I was saying before I was RUDELY interrupted, you desire information about who might have a hand in the kidnapping of our kind?"

"Yes!" Jesse said, relieved that someone had finally had something they could use. "Anything you tell me would be really helpful!"

"Very well," Carter said before he began to pace back and forth as he began explaining, still being followed by the villager child, "You see, there is an old myth that has been passed down through many, many, MANY generations of villager. One that we must never forget." He began before clearing his throat, "You see, long ago there lived-"

"Excuse me, this isn't going to be a very long tale, is it?" Jesse interrupted the villager, not liking the sound of where his story was going.

The villager hmm'ed in thought before turning back towards her, "Why, yes. One that will take many hours to tell. Possibly all day if I am to give you every. Single. Detail."

"Every single-" Olivia gasped before she shook her head, "But it'll be night by the time you finish! There's no way we can waste time like that!"

"Yeah, can you shorten it by, like, a lot," Axel said as he brought his hands in front of him and shrunk the space between them as emphasis.

Carter's nostrils flared as his face twisted in annoyance before he mumbled under his breath and sighed. "Fine, if you HAVE to be so impatient." He said before he breathed deeply and began to talk in a rapid pace, "Long story short, some villagers kicked some outcasts from the village, they swore revenge, made their own lair deep in the forest, they want to kill us all or so the tale goes, yadda yadda yadda," Carter finished and looked at the Order of the Stone with an exasperated look. "Is that to your satisfaction?"

"Yep, that's perfect!" Jesse said with a nod and a smile. That was just the information they needed! "You wouldn't happen to know where they are in the forest, would you?"

The white cloaked villager considered for a moment before he nodded, "I do believe I have a map that will help lead you all there."

"That… was surprisingly easy," Lukas said as he looked at the villager suspiciously.

"Great! Can we have it?" Jesse asked as she held out her hand in anticipation.

The villager just looked at the hand before shaking his head, "Unfortunately, it's not as simple as that."

"…Seriously?" Jesse sighed as she let her arm drop to her side. Of course it couldn't be that easy.

"Why am I not surprised?" Lukas said sadly as he put his face in his hand in resignation.

"Okay, but why can't you just give it to us without any strings attached?" Olivia asked, disappointed that they couldn't catch a break.

"Because the place where the outcasts live is a dangerous place," Carter said before he let out a 'hmph,' "We can't just let any adventurer risk their lives without proving themselves to us."

"Can't you make an exception? I mean, we're the Order of the Stone! We're trying to _save_ your fellow villagers," Jesse explained, as she tried her best to be patient with the villager. She hoped they didn't have to go on some long quest that would put even _more_ villagers at risk.

"Sadly, I cannot. We are a kind of mob that is deeply etched in tradition; there will be no exceptions… even if our village is in danger," The mayor's nose twitched as he looked at the four friends with an unamused stare.

"… Alright, what do we have to do?" Jesse asked as mentally braced herself for whatever quest they had to go through. Did the Order of the Stone have to go deep underground and slay an army of zombies? Did they have to go deep within a jungle and get some ancient treasure? Maybe they'd have to go to the End and…

No, wait, the End was still flooded. Jesse almost forgot that last part. They'd really need to fix that…

Carter cleared his throat and began to explain, "First, you will need to find me a compass. Ne-"

"Oh, oh, I have one!" Malia called out as she reached into her inventory and pulled one out and waved it in the air.

Carter just stared at Malia with an exasperated look before he continued, "Next you'll need sixteen emeralds that you'll receive from my fellow villagers."

"Okay, emeralds I don't have…" Malia said as she lowered her arm and slipped the compass back into her inventory.

"Let me guess, we have to get the emeralds by trading materials with them, right?" Lukas asked.

"And by helping out with other things that need to be done. We also need someone to help with farming and gathering fish since all our farmers and fisherman have been kidnapped," The mayor said as he looked at the rest of the villagers behind him. With a saddened sigh, he turned back to the group.

"This is all to get one tiny map? This is sounding more and more like you getting us to do chores," Axel said as he crossed his arms and looked at the mayor suspiciously.

"No, this is to prove you all have the kindness and tenacity to help our kind. We practically revere those kinds of adventurers," Carter said with a shrug before turning away and walking back into the crowd with the child villager following behind him. "It shouldn't be too hard to get the emeralds quickly if the stories about the Order of the Stone are to be believed."

With those final words, the crowd of villagers dispersed and many either went back into their houses or began walking the streets of the village. A few villagers gave the Order of the Stone a few glares and wary looks before returning to what they were doing before.

With a sigh, Jesse turned back to her friends before she put her hands on her hips and smiled reassuringly at them, "Okay, looks like we have a job to do, guys. Not the most exciting part on our adventure, but if that means getting closer to where these evil villagers are and where the kidnapper is, then I'm all for it."

"Yeah, but did it have to be chores?" Axel groaned, disappointed he and his friends didn't get the map right away so they could fight the kidnapper as soon as possible.

"Hey, they're just chores. That's practically child's play! We so have this in the bag," Jesse said confidently.

"Are we sure this will lead us to the kidnapper? What if it's all one giant chicken chase?" Olivia wondered aloud.

"Well, it's the only lead we have. Besides, who else would have a motive to kidnap villagers?" Jesse responded with a reassuring smile. She was about to say something else before she glanced around the village and saw the villagers stare at them from far away, watching their every move. With a shiver, she whispered to her friends, "Let's plan what we're doing back at the inn. Their stares is starting to give me the creeps."

"Way ahead of you, Jesse," Olivia said as she opened the door to the inn and quickly walked inside.

Before everyone else could walk inside, Malia called out to Lukas, "Hey, blonde guy! You still need that ice for your face, right?"

Lukas considered for a moment before he looked back at his friends, "I'll catch up with you guys in a little bit," He said before he began to walk over to Malia.

"Alright. See you when you're done," Jesse replied with a shrug and closed the door to the inn behind her and Axel.

As soon as he reached Malia, Lukas put his hands on his hips and looked at the trader questioningly, "So do you have the ice on you or…?"

"Ha! I don't carry ice on me. No, one of my llamas have it," She said before she looked in front of the stable and saw her llamas standing in front of it staring off into space. Malia went over to one with a light blue saddle and reached into its chest and pulled out a block of packed ice. "Here you go! One packed ice block for one painful looking eye on your face. Guaranteed to not melt in your hand or your mouth. Trust me, I tried and almost ended up freezing my own mouth shut. Speaking of which…" She said before reaching into another llama's chest and pulled out a few pieces of white carpet and wrapped the block in them. "This is to keep the ice from freezing your eye off," The poncho wearing girl said before she handed the wrapped ice to Lukas.

"Cool, packed ice; that's rather hard to get," Lukas said before placing the wrapped on top of his black eye and instantly relaxed. "Oh wow, that feels a lot better. Thanks for this."

"No problem. As for where I got the ice, I have an Ice Guy. Get all my ice from him…" Malia trailed off as an idea popped into her head and she broke into a sly smile. "Say, Li- uh, Lukas, you're the building guy from the Order of the Stone, right?"

"Uh, is that what people call me?" Lukas wondered aloud, having heard no one calling him 'building guy' before. "I, uh, guess?"

"Well, you have come to the right trader!" Malia broke into in excited grin and went over to her other llamas and started opening chests. "I have a wide selection of blocks to sell! From wood to wool to polished diorite, you can't go wrong with Malia's Marvelous Merchandise!" She said before pulling out a firework and firing it into the air before striking a pose with her hand in the air and a hand on her hip with a big grin just as the firework exploded in the air.

Lukas was at a loss for words as he stared at Malia for a moment before he finally finished processing what had happened. "Uh, is this really the time for this?"

"There's always time to make a sale! Now, would you like some wood blocks?" She asked before she reached into a chest and pulled out a few stacks. "I have good old fashioned oak wood logs! Good for making simple buildings. I also have tons and tons of slime blocks!" She said before putting the blocks back and pulled out some others, "Good for making a wonderfully bouncy bounce house!"

"Uh, I don't…"

"Or! Or! Or maybe you have a special someone and you want to get them something nice. Well, have no fear because I have many flowers and delicious cakes that you can use as gifts," Malia said before she opened up another chest and pulled out many different kinds of flowers and held them up in the air before shoving it back into the chest. "Not in a relationship and you don't care about anything I just said? Well, who needs to be in a relationship when you can make your very own igloo?!" Malia said before she pulled out some snow blocks and held them in the air as well.

"Okay, stop stop stop… just stop," Lukas said as he held out his hands in front of him and sighed heavily. "If I say that I'll think about it, will you PLEASE save the sales pitch for later?"

Malia considered for a moment before she smiled excitedly, "Well, why didn't you say so? Of _course_ we can work out something later! As me and many other people in my line of profession says: The customer is always right! And if they're wrong, try to set them right!" She glanced around the village before her eyes landed on a few villagers talking to each other. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to see if I can squeeze a few emeralds from some villagers," The strange trader said before walking away from Lukas and headed towards the villagers.

Lukas blinked slowly for few moments before groaning and placing the wrapped packed ice on his black eye. "That… was very weird. Never had anyone practically bouncing up and down and talking my ear off trying to sell me building blocks… or anything for that matter." He paused for a moment before he took the wrapped ice off his face so he could stare at it. "Still…" Lukas muttered, as if he was considering something before he shrugged.

And with that, he made his way toward the inn.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

"Okay, so how should we work on getting those emeralds?" Jesse asked her friends the moment she closed the door. Olivia went over to sit on her bed while Axel decided to lean against the wall with his arms crossed, still unhappy with the way things were going.

"Well, a couple of us can work on the farming and fishing. I was thinking of helping with the farming myself," Olivia said as she pulled a lever out of her inventory and flipped it a few times as she considered something. "Maybe I can work on a sort of automated farming system. That way it'll help out the villagers even after we leave."

"Great idea, Olivia! Couldn't have thought of a better idea myself," Jesse smiled at her friend before she put a hand to her chin as she thought about what to do herself. "Hmm… I might just go talk to the villagers and see if I can get anything they want to trade for. Maybe get them something that won't take long… maybe they need coal or wool or something like that." She then turned and looked at her large friend who seemed to be sulking in the corner, "Do you have any plans, Axel?"

"Yeah, how about not doing any chores?" Axel grumbled out loud, clearly displeased by the whole situation.

Jesse frowned at Axel words and thought for a moment before breaking into a sly grin. "You know, I'm sure the villagers would thank you if you took out some zombies for them. Sure, it's daytime, but maybe there's a cave close to the village that zombies could come out of and attack some poor helpless villager. I'm sure the great King of Boom Town can take on a few zombies in exchange for some emeralds."

Axel's eyes widened as he considered Jesse's suggestion. Fighting off some zombies would be a lot more fun than farming or fishing. Plus, he could get a little fighting action before the Order of the Stone got the map and headed off. He was a lot more eager to get more action on the adventure but that was probably because he hadn't been on any major 'Order of the Stone Adventure' with his friends in a few months. He kind of missed them, actually.

Yes… Axel could handle fighting some zombies.

"Okay, you won me over. I'll save the villagers from any stray zombie that dares shows its ugly face," Axel said with a wide grin and put his hands on his hips confidently.

"That's more like it!" Jesse raised a hand in the air for Axel and he high fived it enthusiastically. Then she put her hand in her hip and gave her friends a big smile, "Now we just need Lukas to figure out what he wants to do and we'll get those emeralds way before the sun even sets! Then we'll be one step closer pounding that stupid kidnapper to the ground."

"Great, then I'll get started on that automatic farm," Olivia said as she got off her bed and was about to walk out the door before something caught her eye. She looked over and saw a book with its spine up on the floor near a bed, along with a few pieces of paper face down beside it. "Huh… there's a book on the floor."

Jesse raised an eyebrow at Olivia before her sight traveled to where her friend was staring and her eyes widened as she recognized it. "Hey, isn't that one of Lukas' journals?" She asked before she went over and picked it off the ground, closing it.

"Dude, why would he leave it on the ground like that?" Axel wondered before he shrugged, "Unless he was planning to write on the ground like some weird… floor writer."

"Right…" Olivia looked at Axel strangely, trying to figure out if he was trying to make a joke but failed. She then turned towards Jesse and began talking to her friend, "He was looking a little out of it when we woke up. We should probably give it back to him."

"Or we could take a peek and see if he wrote anything juicy," Axel said as he wondered what Lukas would write in it. He did read a bit of the journal that Lukas had on display at the treasure room. It was actually an interesting read for Axel, considering he didn't read books that often. However, Axel was curious if Lukas wrote anything interesting about his friend's adventures through the Portal Network and wanted to take a peek. It did have some stuff about the biomes that Jesse and the others went to and Lukas wrote down some stuff about their adventures, some comments about it, and a little bit about the rest of the Order.

"What? I really don't think that's a good idea. What if it's private journal or something?" Olivia asked, disapproving that Axel would even think about doing such a thing.

"Well, did he say it was private?" Axel questioned.

"Uh… no, I don't remember him saying it was private or anything…" Olivia considered, as she tried to recall exactly what Lukas had said. "I think he said that it had stuff with blueprints in it… at least, one of journals he had did."

"Then I say it'll be fine! If it's just blueprints, it won't hurt to take just a little look," Axel said with a confident grin.

"Still, I don't think we should," Olivia said before she put a her hand to her chin in thought. There was something off about how Lukas acted when she and Jesse were interested in the journal earlier. Something that was telling her to leave well enough alone…

"Well, I think we should," Axel said, firm on his stance regarding the journal. He then looked at Jesse and asked, "What do you think?"

Jesse, silent during Axel and Olivia's debate, listened to both of their reasons and she began to consider what to do. On one hand, it was Lukas' journal. Sure, he didn't say it was private and all it probably had was a few blueprints, but it was still his and did they really have a right to look at it without asking him?

On the other hand, would Lukas not mind them looking at it? He was completely fine with everyone reading the journal he had at Order Hall, so wouldn't it be the same thing? Would there be such a difference between the journals?

In the end, Jesse made her decision.

"Sorry, Axel, but I'll have to side with Olivia on this one. We shouldn't look at someone's journal unless they actually tell us it's okay," She said before she looked at the cover. "We should give back this to him when we get the chance."

"Aw, fine, we won't look at it then," Axel said with a sigh. He wasn't happy with the decision but he'd get over it.

"Thanks for understanding, Jesse," Olivia said with a smile. She was just glad that they wouldn't have to go through any unnecessary drama if Lukas found out they read it and got upset about it.

"Well, now that everything is settled, let's go out there and get those emeralds. First, I'll give this to Lu-" Jesse began saying before she opened the door to the inn and saw Lukas making a motion like he was about to open the door himself. "Well, speak of the Lukas."

"Why? Was I being talked about?" He asked, wondering what his friends could have possibly have discussed while he was dealing with Malia's trade spiel. He was about to say something else before his eye landed on the book that Jesse was holding and his eyes widened. "Uh… why do you have my journal?"

"You left it on the floor. Figured you'd want it back," Jesse said before she handed it back to her friend and she grinned, "Unless you wanted it to make friends with the floor."

"No, I'm pretty sure my journal would hate that," Lukas joked back before he looked at his friend suspiciously, tensing up slightly. "You didn't see anything in it, did you?"

"No… should I have?" Jesse asked, wondering why he got all tense all of a sudden.

"Nope, not a thing," Lukas said quickly before shoving it back into his inventory where it belonged and quickly changed the subject, "So, did you guys decide how you're gonna get the emeralds from the villagers?"

"Yep, we were just about to head out and get started," Jesse said, very aware that Lukas wanted the topic off his journal as soon as possible, but wasn't going to question it; if he didn't want to talk about it, then she wouldn't push. "How do you feel about fishing?"

"Hmm, well, I'm not really hooked on the idea but I'll give it a shot," Lukas said before he frowned like he tasted something horrible, "Okay, I did NOT just say a horrible pun."

Olivia, walking up from behind Jesse who was trying very hard not to burst out laughing, looked at Lukas with a raised eyebrow, "You did… and it was very, VERY bad."

"Yeah… I'll just… go get a fishing rod from Malia or something," Lukas said before he walked away and tried to avoid eye contact with his friends.

"O-okay, let's just go get those emeralds," Jesse said as she tried to swallow her laughter and began walking towards a few villagers.

"Right. Let's go Axel!" Olivia called out to her friend who was still in the inn.

"Yeah, coming!" Axel called and began to walk to the door before he noticed a few papers still on the floor. His eyes shifted back and forth to make sure no one was watching before he picked them up off the ground and stuffed it into his inventory. "I'm sure a little look couldn't hurt," Axel whispered to himself before he headed out of the inn himself.

* * *

 **A/N: AXEL, NO! YOUR KLEPTOMANIA HAS STRUCK AGAIN. D:**

 **You'd think after the whole potion thing in episode one he wouldn't take things again but... he is kinda curious about what Lukas has written. I would be too, to be quite honest. I really wanted to read his journal after episode eight, let me tell you. xD**

 **Also, IF I HAD TO GO THROUGH THE TRADING EMERALDS THING IN MY MINECRAFT WORLD, THEN THE ORDER OF THE STONE HAS TO TOO. At least they don't have to run back and forth between their house and a village far away and had to climb a few mountains to get there. Unlike me. :|**

 **I hope I'm not making Malia seem annoying. She's just really, really excited about the Order of the Stone and making a sale. SHE'S A GOOD CHARACTER, I SWEAR!**

 **Anyway, the poll has closed and three people have voted. The question on my profile was 'If you had the option to read something private that belonged to someone else, would you do it?' and two people have voted no like the good Samaritans they are. :D**

 **I probably won't do another poll for a while, BUT I am going to ask a question and I kinda want people to answer. :3**

 **'If you could name a villager, what would it be?'**

 **Yep. Totally innocent question. It's not like I'll use a name that someone will come up with to name a villager in the future. *WINK WINK NUDGE NUDGE***

 **So, I guess that's all I have to ramble about for now. Adios amigos!**


	6. Episode 1: Chapter 5

**CHAPTER FIVE**

"Okay, just one more piece," Olivia mumbled to herself as she placed some redstone on an oak wood block before stepping back to view her work to make sure everything looked to be in place. Once she made sure all the seeds were planted and all the dispensers had their water buckets full and ready to release, she went over to the front of the new automatic farm to get a better view of it.

The new automatic farm had two sections and two levels, each with four by four tilled dirt blocks with their seeds already planted. At the back of each sections was a dispenser with their water bucket primed and ready to dump its contents. When the water was ready to be released, the water from the dispenser would take all the wheat and seeds in its path and wash them down toward a running stream of water at the front of the sections on the bottom level which led to a dropper which placed it into the chest where it could be easily retrieved from.

"Hmm, interesting build, human," A cleric villager who had been watching Olivia's progress commented on the new automated farm and looked over at her, looking rather impressed. "You have great knowledge when it comes to redstone."

"Thanks," Olivia said, slightly embarrassed from the compliment. "But I couldn't get it fully automated. You guys will still have to plant the seeds once the water washes away all the wheat and vegetables into the chest. None of the things I have can even plant seeds and I don't know of anything that would be able to."

"That's fine, human," The cleric shrugged as he looked at Olivia with a smile. "Our farmer children, once they grow up, wouldn't have had anything to do if you did everything automatic. You just made things easier for them when they grow up. So I think you deserve this," He said as he reached into his sleeve and pulled out a few emeralds then gave it to Olivia.

Olivia took the emeralds from the villager and counted them, "Woah, you're giving me four? That's a lot more than I thought you'd give me," She said before she realized she might have sounded ungrateful and tried to backtrack, "Not that I'm not grateful for you giving me these. The emeralds will really help us out."

"It's all right, human," The cleric villager said with a shrug, "The more emeralds we give you, the faster your team will be able to save all the villagers that have been taken and stop that kidnapper from taking any more of us."

"We'll make sure that kidnapper is stopped, you can count on us!" Olivia said, desperately trying to believe her words as she said them. The Order of the Stone would defeat that kidnapper… right?

"Splendid!" The cleric smiled at her words before he looked around and began to whisper to her, "Sorry about how my fellow villagers have been acting. We really distrust new humans coming to our village, even if we have heard of the Order of the Stone. We've had one too many humans try to kill us or bully us around just for fun." He said before he nodded at Olivia and began to walk away. "I wish you and your team the best of luck, human!"

"Thanks again for the emeralds!" Olivia called out to nice cleric villager and shoved her newly gained emeralds into her inventory. With her job done, Olivia started walking the streets of the village and began to look around. The villagers, while still staring at her, didn't glare at her as much as they did before. That made Olivia feel a lot more relieved about walking through the village.

As she considered trying to help out the villagers some more, she spotted Malia trying to trade with a villager, only for them to stare at her as if she was doing something to annoy them. Olivia got closer, curious to see what was going on.

"Come on, please! You gotta need more wool! I still have a full stack of it!" Malia pleaded to the shepherd villager as she held out the stack of wool to the villager.

"And I told you that you already gave me two stacks. I don't need any more and that's that!" The shepherd villager told Malia sternly before he let out 'hmph' and walked away from her.

"But- but!" The trader began to say before she let out a sigh and mumbled to herself, "I was hoping to get more emeralds out of him. Aw, dang it."

"So how many emeralds did you get?" Olivia asked, causing Malia to flail about before she turned around and saluted, which made Olivia raise her eyebrow in confusion.

"Olivia the Redstone Master! Ma'am! I got four emeralds to help out the Order of the Stone!" Malia said excitedly as she stopped saluting as she pulled out four emeralds and handed it over to the 'Redstone Master' eagerly.

"Uh… Redstone Master? Do people call me that?" Olivia asked, wondering when people would ever call her that. "There's no way I'm a master. At most I'd say I'm an expert."

"But! But! People do call you that," Malia said before she smiled sheepishly. "… And by people, I mean mostly me. But still! You're still one of the greatest redstone users of our generation!" The girl began to bounce up and down with excitement.

Olivia blinked at the praise and rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment, "Well, thanks… I think," She said before her mind began to fill with doubt which caused her to frown but quickly tried to get it off her face when she realized Malia was still looking at her eagerly. "Right, so… have you seen my friends around here?"

"Hmm," Malia mumbled as she put a hand on her chin as she recalled where the rest of the Order of the Stone was. "Well, I know the blonde guy is still fishing in the nearby lake. He seemed to be writing in his journal in-between catching fish, though. It's like that book is practically attached to his arm, if you ask me. Maybe I should sell him some blank books…" She said before she looked like she was thinking about something for a moment before continuing, "I think Jesse went to a nearby cave to get coal or something, at least that's what one of the villagers told me. As for Axel," She was saying as she pointed towards the inn, "He should be at the inn right now. I know I saw him going over to one of the clerics to trade in some zombie flesh and I was going to say hi to him but he kinda rushed into the inn before I got the chance."

Olivia looked over at the inn, briefly wondering why Axel would be in such a hurry to go back to the inn. Maybe he wanted to take a break from fighting zombies? She'd probably find out once she went back to the inn. "Thanks for telling me, Malia. You going to go try and get more emeralds?" She asked the overly excitable trader.

"Yep! I won't rest until the Order of the Stone has all the emeralds they need!" She said before she puffed out her cheeks in annoyance as she stared at some of the villagers watching them. "Now, if only these villagers will just take my stuff. Like Carter! I know I gave him a ton of paper the last time I was here, but you'd think he'd want more paper by now!"

"Right…" Olivia stared at the girl for a second before she backed away. "Good luck with the trading, Malia. I need to go see how Axel's doing," She said before she turned around and began to head towards the inn.

"Bye Olivia the Redstone Master!" Malia waved at the departing girl before setting her sights on a few villagers as she walked over to see if she could strike a deal with them.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

Lukas knew that fishing had to have been one of the most boring and frustrating things to do in their world.

He just never realized how boring until that very moment.

"Come on… come on…" He mumbled to himself, watching the bobber bob ever so slightly as he saw a few fish swim close to the lure before turning away uninterested. "Oh, come on!"

Sighing to himself, he glanced down at the journal he placed next to him and considered writing some more in it, but ended up deciding against it. He only had one more fish to catch and he figured the moment he'd try to write in it again, the fish would nibble at the lure the moment he was really into his writing.

So, instead, he looked down at the water to stare at his reflection. His hair wasn't as messy as it had been when he had woken up and he didn't have bags under his eyes anymore, but his eye still looked like it was extremely bruised and swollen. He was still putting the wrapped packed ice on it every once in a while, but he knew that it would be awhile before the bruise went away. While he was resigned to that fact, he wasn't exactly thrilled that it was a reminder of the night before.

He was so sure that he had tackled that kidnapper when he had jumped off the roof. Lukas had done something so unexpected that he thought that the kidnapper wouldn't have seen it coming. Yet, the invisible kidnapper somehow avoided him and even removed the arrow from his side to keep them from noticing him. Did the kidnapper see Lukas about to jump and planned accordingly? Maybe the kidnapper use an enderpearl to escape when Lukas had tackled him? Too many 'what if' questions and no answers to be found.

Lukas sighed as recalled the potion to the face he received after he tried to sneak up on the kidnapper when Jesse tried to distract him. If he had just been more prepared, then maybe Jesse wouldn't have had to save him from the zombies that were trying to kill him. Maybe then Jesse would have gone after the kidnapper.

Don't get him wrong, he was very grateful that Jesse had saved him. Heck, he was BEYOND grateful. Still, it felt like…

Lukas pulled himself out of his thoughts when he saw the bobber get pulled underwater by a fish and he began to tug on the fishing rod and reeled it in. The moment the fish was pulled up and out of the water, Lukas grabbed it and put into his inventory. With the last fish he needed safe and in his inventory, he put away his journal and fishing rod and started to walk away from the lake and towards the village in search for Carter to hand in the fish. Maybe he'd head towards the inn after he was done to see if any of his friends was around.

Lukas was just hoping things couldn't get any worse once they got the map.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

Olivia, finally making it to the inn, went up to the door and opened it before walking in and noticed Axel standing next to his bed. She was about to say something to Axel before she noticed he was looking down at something and mumbling to himself.

"Ugh, why is this so vague? Would have been nice if he dropped the first part to this…" Axel grumbled as he held something in front of him. Olivia walked closer to get a better look and her eyes widened the moment she realized what he might have been holding.

"Axel!" Olivia called out to him, hands on her hips and looked very disappointed at her friend.

"AH!" Axel yelled out in surprised before he turned around and saw Olivia staring at him with a look he saw plenty of times before. "Uh, hey Olivia…" Axel began to say before he looked down and saw that he still had the two papers he had in his hand before he quickly tried to hide it behind his back. He knew it was pointless, but he could hope. "So, did you finish that auto farm you said you'd help make?"

"Yes, but don't change the subject! Don't think I didn't see what you have!" Olivia said before she groaned and facepalmed. "Please tell me that's not papers from Lukas' journal."

"Uh… it's not the papers for Lukas' journal?" Axel said jokingly and with a smile but stopped when he saw Olivia glare at him. "Um… okay, it is a few pages from his journal, but let me explain-!"

"Didn't you hear what Jesse told us?! She said not to look at his journal until Lukas gave us his permission!"

"Yeah… but I didn't look at his journal. Just some papers that fell from it," Axel said as he brought the papers that he had tried to hide behind him and brought it in front so Olivia could see.

"It's the same thing! It still came from his journal!" Olivia tried to keep herself from yelling at Axel, but she was beginning to feel very livid.

"Mmm, I don't know if it came from his journal, though. It looks like he ripped it out from something else," Axel said as he held out the papers in front of him and showed that there were rips on one side of the pages. "See? Kinda weird to rip something out of the thing you're writing in."

"Really?" Olivia couldn't help but voice her curiosity before she shook her head and continued to look mad at her friend. "It still fell out of Lukas' journal, Axel. You should give it back to him as soon as you see him and apologize."

"Fine," Axel said and sighed loudly. "Besides, it didn't really say much of anything except for some kind of secret he's keeping to himself."

"Secret?" Olivia asked before she stopped herself. What could possibly- no, no, no. She shouldn't get curious. They had to return it as soon as possible.

"Yeah, listen to this," Axel said as he started to read the page before Olivia could stop him.

 _'… should probably just keep it to myself and not say anything. It's probably better this way. I'm afraid it could ruin things and that's the last thing I'd want. Besides, if I don't say anything it'd just go away on its own, right? So it shouldn't be a problem, right? Just gotta keep it to myself and it'll just be a distant memory…_ _'_

"See? That's sounds totally suspicious and secretive! I kinda really want to know now," Axel said before he raised the other paper and showed it to Olivia. "The other one isn't really anything special, though. Just a picture of a herd of pigs that has the title 'A Herd of Pigs' at the top of it."

Before Olivia could say anything, the door to the inn slammed open and both Olivia and Axel looked over to see Lukas walk inside and glare at Axel angrily while looking like he wanted to punch the larger man in the face. Lukas had heard everything Axel had said before he opened the door and he was very upset and hurt.

"Just what. Do you think. You're doing?" Lukas said, the anger in his tone of voice rising.

"Uh, I was just-" Axel was about to say something to defend himself, but before he could, Lukas stormed up to him and snatched away the pages that were rightfully his.

"You were just reading something that doesn't even concern you!" Lukas yelled before quickly putting the papers in his inventory, even though the damage had been done. "Where did you even get them?"

"Hey, they were just lying on the floor so I picked them up. They probably fell out of your journal when it fell on the floor," Axel said as he crossed his arms and looked away from his angry friend. While Axel did feel guilty about reading something he shouldn't have, he wasn't sure if he was going to apologize for something he was just curious about.

"And that gave you the right to look at it?!" Lukas was hurt that someone that he saw as a friend (albeit not very close) would just read something without considering how he would have felt. If the wrong piece of paper had fallen out of his journal… Lukas didn't even want to think about it.

"Hey, I was just curious. Besides, I would have given it back."

"And you probably would have never even said that you read it!"

"Uh… well," Axel mumbled, surprised that Lukas had guessed what he was going to do.

"Guys? Uh… guys?" Olivia tried to raise her voice high enough so that the two arguing boys could hear her, but they didn't even notice. She had to try and calm things down before things really got out of hand. If only Jesse was around, then she would have had the situation calmed down in a jiffy.

"Why am I not surprised?" Lukas mumbled as he rolled his eyes, causing Axel to glare at him.

"Hey, it's not like there was much to read in the first place!" Axel said, completely missing the point to what Lukas was trying to say. "Besides, what did you mean when you wrote 'you'll keep it to yourself and not say anything'? What kind of secret are you keeping? Is it something really bad that you're scared of us finding out?"

"That's none of your business!" Lukas yelled at Axel defensively. "Besides, isn't that really hypocritical of you to say?"

"What are you talking about?" Axel questioned, glaring at Lukas and putting his fists on his sides.

"You and Olivia are apparently keeping some 'big secret' from Jesse. Maybe I should be the one interrogating you about that!"

"Wait, you know about that?!" Olivia squeaked out. This was bad… this was very bad.

"Hey! How could you possibly know about that?" Axel said, getting close to Lukas until he was practically towering over him and looked very threatening.

"When we riding the llamas to the village, SOMEONE was being a little loud for talking about some sort of secret!" Lukas glared right back at Axel, standing his ground. "Maybe I should be asking what you're keeping from Jesse!"

"Hey, that's none of your business!" Axel told Lukas while poking him in the chest with his finger.

"Well, it's none of YOUR business about what I'm keeping secret either!" Lukas told Axel while poking him back. The two men continued to glare at each other, waiting for the other to make a move until…

"Hey, guys? You in here?" Jesse asked as she walked through the open door, looking down at her newly obtained emeralds. "Malia said everyone was back at the inn and I wanted to do a count of all the emeralds we have so we can get the map and…" Jesse trailed off as she looked up and saw two of her friends glaring at each other like they had just gotten into a big fight. The tension was so thick in the air that Jesse could have poked it with her sword and it wouldn't leave a dent. "Uh… am I interrupting something?"

The two men continued to glare at each other, staying in that position as they both muttered a 'Hi, Jesse' without looking over at her.

"Uh, you could say that," Olivia said, not really wanting to mention what they were fighting about. She just sighed and shook her head as she placed a hand on her forehead, suddenly feeling exhausted from the fight she wasn't even a part of. So much for avoiding unnecessary drama…

"Do I want to know what it was about?" Jesse asked her friend, worried about the sudden fight between Axel and Lukas. Whatever was going on, it must have been bad.

"You probably do want to know… but for the sake of everyone involved, just don't ask," Olivia said with a sigh. She just couldn't believe that Lukas even knew that she and Axel was keeping a secret from the others. She would have to talk to him about it later when he wasn't still fuming at Axel.

"Okay, if you say so," Jesse said, still worried about the whole situation, but wanted to respect their boundaries. "Anyway, about those emeralds…"

"Oh! Right, I have the ones I got from my automated farm and from Malia right here," Olivia said as she pulled the emeralds out of her inventory and handed it to her friend.

"Great, thanks!" Jesse smiled before it fell as she looked at her two other friends still glaring at one another. "Uh, guys? I need your emeralds too."

Keeping their angry stares on one another as they walked over to Jesse and handed her the emeralds, they quickly walked back to the middle of the room and continued their glare off.

"Okay, this is a seven on the weirdness scale and growing steadily," Jesse muttered to herself as she looked at her two angry friends before she counted out the emeralds. "Let's see… hey, we have all sixteen!" She smiled excitedly and held the emeralds up above her head. "Yes! And it's not even half past mid-day!"

"That's great, Jesse!" Olivia smiled at her friend's enthusiasm, before she glanced at her other two friends and frowned. "Hmm… maybe you should go tell Malia we have all of it while I'll see if I can keep these two boys from killing each other."

Jesse nodded. "Right, let's meet up at the center of town before we give it to Carter." With those final words and one last worried look at her friends, Jesse made her way out of the inn to see if she could meet up with the strange trader.

Once Jesse had left the building, Olivia sighed and looked at both Axel and Lukas and raised her hands up in exasperation. "Okay, you two! Enough with the glaring contest! We have to go get that map so we can stop that kidnapper. Just try not to kill each other before we get there."

Axel grumbled before he crossed his arms and turned away from Lukas. "Fine, but I'm keeping as far away from him as I can."

"You finally said something I can agree with," Lukas said, still visibly upset before turning away and walking out of the inn before slamming the door shut.

Axel let out a massive sigh, relieved that Lukas had finally gotten out of his sight before he tensed up when he saw Olivia's disapproving look. "Uh… what?"

"You know, you still need to apologize for reading those papers without his permission, right?"

"Eh… we'll see if he stops acting like some big jerk first," Axel grumbled before he headed out of the inn to catch up with the others.

Olivia, on the other hand, tried to keep herself from facepalming and groaning in agony.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

"So, you humans have collected all the emeralds already?" Carter asked the moment all the members of the Order of the Stone came to see him.

Malia was also there, but he didn't care much about her presence.

"Yep! Did you ever have any doubts?" Jesse said confidently as she handed the emeralds and Malia's compass to the villager eagerly.

"Actually… yes," The mayor answered truthfully before he looked towards the other members of the Order of the Stone and looked back at Jesse. "You all seem rather… hmm, how should I put it… like a bunch of ragtag individuals all gathered up in one group," He said before glancing at Axel. "One of your members seems to be wearing glass on his head. Can the human even breathe?"

"Hey, I can breathe just fine, thank you very much," Axel grumbled. Lukas pretended to cough while he said something along the lines of 'cutting circulation to his brain' under his breath which caused Axel to glare at him.

"Right…" Carter stared at the two for a moment before rolling his eyes in annoyance then turned his attention towards Jesse. "Is your team ready to save our villager from the invisible menace and stop him once and for all?"

"Ready? We were born ready!" Jesse replied to the mayor with such confidence, it even surprised Carter that a human had such bravery and confidence for her team despite the obvious dispute between two members.

"I see… very well," Carter nodded at Jesse as he slipped the emeralds and compass up his sleeves before pulling out a piece of paper and handed it to Jesse. "Behold… the map that will lead you to the lair of those that wish us harm."

"Thank you," Jesse said as she took the map to stare at it for a moment before she looked back at the villager in confusion. "Uh… this isn't a very detailed map."

"Well, it was made several generations ago and nobody from our villager dared even set foot anywhere close to where they live," Carter answered.

"Oh! Oh! I can probably help with that!" Malia raised her hand excitedly as she slid over to where Jesse was standing and took a peek over her shoulder. "Hmm… there's a dark brown line that kind of looks like it's meant to be a river. I could probably cross reference this old map with some of my newer ones," Malia said before she reached into her inventory and pulled out a fully filled map and showed it to Jesse.

"Wow, nice," Jesse commented as looked over the map before she nodded at Malia with a grin. "This is definitely a big help. You should probably take this if you're going to lead us there," Jesse said before she handed the villager's map to Malia.

"I won't let you down, Jesse the Leader!" Malia saluted Jesse before she bounced up and down excitedly. "I'll go get my horse and llamas and be back in a jiffy," She said before she rushed towards the stable and left the Order of the Stone behind.

"Hey, do you think you could tell us more about what might be at this lair? Maybe tell us more about these villager outcasts?" Olivia asked, wanting to get more information out of Carter before they had to leave.

"Hmm… let's see," Carter muttered for a moment as his large nose twitched before he cleared his throat. "The outcasts you may meet are said to be grey and pale, almost like they were very ill. It is said that their very evilness had turned their skin that color. Many of my kind call them 'Illagers' to reflect their new appearance and dark hearts." Carter paused for a moment before he sighed. "Unfortunately, that is all I know. I do not know of any more differences between us."

"Hey, that's going to help us big time," Jesse said as she considered this new information and nodded at the villager. "We'll at least be able to tell the difference between normal villagers and these 'Illagers' now."

"I brought the llamas," Malia called out to the Order of the Stone as she rode on her white horse, followed by all her llamas. "I'm bringing all of them for when you guys rescue all the kidnapped villagers."

"Alright guys, saddle up! Let's leave while we can so we can get there as soon as possible," Jesse said before she and her friends went up to their llamas.

The pink saddled llama, the one Lukas rode on before, noticed him getting closer and let out a soft 'mwa' as she quickly walked over to him and put her face in his hair before nuzzling it.

"Woah there, uh… good to see you too?" Lukas said warily, surprised to see that the llama was excited to see him. At least, he assumed she was happy to see him. Just as long as the llama didn't start spitting at him like the orange saddled one did before.

"Aw, Blossom likes you," Malia said with a smile. "See? I told you she was super friendly!"

Axel chuckled to himself as he got onto his own llama. "Well, looks like Lukas got himself a girlfriend."

Lukas, tensing up at Axel words, shot him a glare before muttering to himself as he saddled up on Blossom and avoided looking at Axel.

"What? It was just a joke! No need to be all huffy about it," Axel said before crossing his arms and let out a 'hmph'.

"Guys, try to at least be civil while we're traveling, okay?" Olivia said as she saddled up, tired of all the fighting that never seemed to end. They were beginning to sound like Soren and Ivor and she did NOT want to travel with another version of those two. She already had to deal with their bickering when they traveled to the Far Lands and she didn't think she could take another long trip with them arguing all over again.

"She's right you know," Jesse told her two arguing friends as she saddled up her own llama. "We're going to be fighting this kidnapper and probably those Illagers too. We need to work together on this and fighting each other isn't going to help us."

The two men considered Jesse's words as they glanced at each other before they looked away, still not prepared to let bygones be bygones.

"Everyone ready?" Malia asked as she glanced back at the Order of the Stone and made sure everyone was saddled up. Once she was sure everything was ready, she put a lead onto Jesse's llama and pulled out her maps to help guide them there.

And so, the Order of the Stone set off into the forest in search of the Illager's lair.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

Surprisingly, the trip didn't take as long as Jesse thought. By the time Malia said that they were getting close, the sky had just barely turned orange from the setting sun.

"Uh-oh, looks like we're heading for a roofed forest biome next," Malia said as she gripped the reins of her horse and shivered. "Monsters like to come out around here despite it still being morning. I really prefer to avoid these kinds of places, but..."

"Don't worry, we got it covered," Jesse said reassuringly as she pulled out her sword in preparation. Lukas and Olivia pulled out their bows and prepared an arrow while Axel just looked around at the forest before staring at his fists and shrugged.

The group continued to make their way through the forest, taking out the occasional zombie that dared showed its head, but they were still making progress. It wasn't until some of the trees began to clear that they saw what they were searching for.

"Woah… is that a mansion?" Lukas asked as he stared wide eyed at the huge mansion that came into view the moment the tall trees began to clear.

The mansion was three stories tall and made from dark oak wood planks with cobblestone at the base of each floor, separating them from the outside. There was a diamond pattern dotted on the walls of the first floor made with dark oak wood logs and there were cobblestone stairs leading up to a set of dark oak doors that had a small window on both sides of it.

"A mansion? I already have a bad feeling about this," Jesse muttered to herself, remembering the 'White Pumpkin' incident all too clearly. "Stay on your guard, guys. There's no telling what we'll find in there."

As soon as the group was close enough, Malia stopped her horse and turned to the Order of the Stone. "Okay, guys. I guess I'll see you all when you're done in there," She said as she got off her horse and pulled out some wood blocks. "I'll make a small building for me and my llamas and wait for you there."

"Alright, try and hang in there, okay? We'll be out of there before you know it!" Jesse said confidently and got off her llama, as did the rest of her team.

As the Order of the Stone began to walk closer to the mansion, they considered how they were going to save the kidnapped villagers.

"Maybe we should storm the place until we find them?" Axel suggested as he looked up at the large mansion and let out a whistle, impressed by how large it was.

"No, we should probably try and sneak in. The question is: Where should we sneak in from?" Olivia suggested, mentally steeling herself and told herself that it was going to be okay and that they'd survive this.

"What if there's traps? The kidnapper could have set up tons of traps if he thought there was even the slightest chance we'd come here," Lukas said, staring at the mansion. The design of the mansion looked... alright in Lukas' opinion. It wasn't as spectacular as the last mansion he saw, but it was doable. Didn't make it any less evil looking, though.

"Whatever we decide, we need to do it soon," Jesse said as they stood in front of the door and tried to peek inside the windows. She didn't see anything other than a few torches and a large staircase in front of the door. She turned towards her team as she thought for a moment before she began to whisper to them. "Okay, here's what I think we should do…"

Before she could voice her thoughts, the door to the mansion opened all of a sudden and the Order of the Stone quickly turned around to stare at the doorway as they prepared their weapons and got ready for any fight that would inevitably come.

What opened the door, though, had caught the entire Order of the Stone off guard.

Standing at the doorway was a brown cloaked villager with his hands on his hips and he had a huge grin on his face as he stared at the four friends. He wasn't grey and pale or looked even remotely evil. He just looked like a regular old villager that had a wide smile. The villager continued to look over at the Order of the Stone before he opened his mouth and began to speak…

"Hello! Welcome to our lovely mansion! Would you like to step inside?"

* * *

 **A/N: Hmm... how curious. :)**

 **Anyway, yes! Finally, we're getting to a part I'm kinda excited about. What am I excited about? Well, wouldn't you like to know? xD**

 **Okay, going through everything from what will happen in the next chapter in my head, I might have to split it up into two parts. It is going to be rather long... but exciting! To me anyway! :D**

 **Anyway, whew... that fight between Axel and Lukas drained me. I've never really written any arguments before so this was kind of new to me and I hope I stayed true to their characters while the fight was going on. I already rewrote it once because the first one didn't feel quite right but the one I have now feels better.**

 **Fun Fact: When I first thought up the story, I didn't know that when you got Lukas his journal back from Slab, that he would want to put into the treasure room. Honestly, I kind of panicked when I learned that because I needed him to have the journal for character development reasons.**

 **Then I thought 'Well, can't he have more than one?' and the rest is history.**

 **There's also those papers that are in his journal... hmm, wonder where they came from. :3c**

 **Anyway, so far I have three villager names that was suggested to me. I'll probably throw them into a randomizer and pick whatever comes out. Of course, I don't need it for a few chapters so if more people want to suggest names, then I'm all for it. :P**

 **From the looks of things, there will probably be either nine or ten chapters that will be in episode one, depending if I split the next chapter up or not. And yes, I am including the prologue.**

 **Until next time... we shall meet again.**


	7. Episode 1: Chapter 6

**CHAPTER SIX**

The Order of the Stone stared at the villager with wide surprised eyes as he continued to grin at the humans in front of him. Out of all the things the Order could have expected to come through that door, a happy smiling villager inviting them into a mansion was not one of them.

"Wait, are you one of the kidnapped villagers from the nearby village?" Jesse asked the villager warily. The villager certainly didn't act like a kidnap victim. She had absolutely no idea what was going on. Was the information from Carter wrong?

"Me? Kidnapped?" The smiling villager chuckled at the thought and leaned on the door frame as he looked at the Order like they were the ones that were crazy. "Listen, I have no idea why you would think that, but I have not been kidnapped by anybody. Me and my fellow villagers live here in peace and harmony, far away any riffraff that could bug us."

"But in a roofed forest with all the monsters? I would think that any sane villager would want to avoid this place," Olivia commented.

"Ha! The monsters," The villager just laughed as he seemed to wipe a tear from his eye. "Monsters would never think to enter in this mansion. It's too bright for them!" The villager pointed at the several glowstone blocks that were dotted on the stairs and walls behind him. The villager then turned back to the Order with a smile still on his face. "Speaking of monsters, you four should probably come inside. Night will be coming soon and there will be a lot more monsters out there and I don't think you humans would like that."

"Uh…" Jesse paused for a moment as she glanced at her friends and their worried faces before looking back at the villager and plastered an innocent, sweet smile on her face. "Would you excuse us of a second? I'd like to consult with the other members of my team."

"Why, go right ahead! Take all the time you need!" The farming villager said in a sweet tone.

Jesse just nodded before she and her friends stepped away from the door way and huddled together to discuss things. The moment she was sure the villager couldn't see her face or hear them talking, Jesse dropped the smile and looked extremely concerned. "Okay, this whole thing is totally suspicious, right?"

"I'll raise that 'suspicious' and add a 'this is totally a trap' to the pile," Lukas said before he glanced at the villager who was still smiling at them, causing Lukas to shiver. He'd thought that the stares from the villagers from the village gave him the creeps. A creepy smiling villager's stare that lived in a creepy mansion was far worse.

"I'm just confused by this whole situation," Olivia said as she glanced at the villager as well before turning back to her friends. "I mean, we were told about grey and pale versions of villagers and that guy looks just like a normal villager to me. And if they were really bad guys, then why open the door and greet us like we were friends? It can't just be because it's a trap, right?"

"Maybe that villager is a big, stupid traitor to the village or something. Maybe we should punch him in the face," Axel said as he raised his fists for emphasis.

"Hmm, maybe later, Axel." Jesse put a finger to her chin as she tried to think about what they should do. "What if we take the villager's invitation and walk inside?"

"Jesse, we'll be walking into a mansion with whatever else is inside that place. I don't know about you, but I remember very clearly what happened the last time we entered a creepy mansion in the middle of nowhere," Lukas told Jesse firmly. "I'd rather not run into a crazy psycho wearing a pumpkin on their head. Again."

"I don't think that's going to happen, Lukas," Jesse said reassuringly before she looked concerned for a moment. "At least, I don't think it'll happen again," she mumbled under her breath with a shrug. "I'm not sure what's going to happen in there, just like you guys, but we're not going to find out if we just keep standing here."

"Uh, Jesse, are you sure? We could be walking in on a trap," Olivia asked unsurely.

"I know, but we don't have that many options right now. The faster we find the kidnapped villagers, the faster we can get out of here," Jesse said before she smiled at her friends confidentially. "Come on, we're the Order of the Stone! As long as we stick together, we can pull through this together!" Jesse nodded reassuringly before looking at Axel. "Besides, we have a plan B if all else fails… or should I say Plan T? Axel, you have a couple TNT in your inventory, right?"

"Yep! Straight from Boom Town itself!" Axel was about to pull it out before Jesse stopped him.

"Good, then we'll use that in case we get overwhelmed or we need to make a daring escape," Jesse said as she looked at all her friends reassuringly. "So, are we ready to go in?"

Lukas looked unsure and worried for a moment before he took a deep breath and nodded. "If you're sure about this… then I'm all for it."

"Same here," Olivia said with a nod.

"Hey, I was won over the moment you mentioned TNT!" Axel said, looking rather excited at the thought of blowing things up.

"Alright, now let's go walk in that mansion and find out what's going on," Jesse said as she plastered her sweet, innocent smile on her face again and turned to walk towards the creepy smiling villager with her friends. "So, I talked to my friends and we're all for getting out of this creepy forest. Mind showing us a tour of this _wonderful_ place since we're going to be here all night?"

"Why, I don't mind at all!" The smiling villager nodded eagerly and sidestepped away from the doorway and ushered the four friends inside. The moment they were all inside, he closed the door and walked up to the staircase and held his hands in the air like he was showing off the place. "Welcome to our home, young humans! Now, before we go up those stairs, we should explore the bottom floor first. I mean, it's only logical to start from the bottom, right?"

"Hey, if that means we don't have to climb a bunch of stairs, I'm all for looking around on the bottom," Axel said as he looked up the stairs, remembering how big the place looked from the outside.

"Not a problem!" The villager said cheerfully as he began to walk down the hallway before he paused and looked back at the Order. "Say, you four look hungry. We will be passing a dining hall up ahead. Maybe you'd like something to eat before I show you my home? We have plenty of pumpkin pie!"

"Hmm, I don't see why not," Jesse said, while still keeping her guard up. She didn't want to say no to the villager just in case he got suspicious of her and her friends.

"Uh, do you have something other than pumpkin pie?" Lukas asked as he shuddered at the thought. Something made of pumpkins in a creepy mansion with possible psychopaths around? Lukas could do without it, thank you very much.

The smile on the villager's face twitched ever so slightly that the Order didn't even notice. "Why, of course! We have plenty of watermelon instead, if you prefer!" The smiling villager waved at the four friends in an effort to get them to follow him. "Now, come on! We don't have all night and I'm sure you four will need a good long _rest_ once you eat some lovely food!"

After giving each other wary looks, the Order followed the villager down the hallway - which was lined with soft, red carpet down the middle. When they turned a corner, they saw several smiling villagers dotting the hallway and chatting with one another. The moment the villagers spotted the tour group, the villagers turned to wave at them.

"Ah, hello!" One of them said and walked up to the tour group. "Welcome to our mansion! I assume these are all travelers that have taken shelter for the night?" The smiling villager asked the other villager that was giving the tour.

"Yep!" The tour guide said cheerfully. "I was even going to take them to get some food. You know, at the _dining room_. Where people normally eat food."

The other smiling villager nodded at the tour guide's words. "Ah, I see. Well, I sure hope they have a good meal." With that, the villager walked away and began chatting with the other villagers in the hallway.

Jesse and her friends glanced at each other, unsure if they should be suspicious of that conversation or not. Still, they followed the tour guide as he made his way down the hallway as they passed several other villagers.

Jesse looked at all the villager's smiling faces, each more creepy than the last. They were just… watching her and her friends. Were they waiting for something? Were they just curious? Jesse wasn't sure.

However, one of the villagers caught her eye that made Jesse pause for just a moment.

A white cloaked villager was standing behind a group of smiling villagers, staring at her and her friends. Oddly enough, he was the only one not smiling creepily at them. His mouth was a flat line and his expression was unreadable. Which, considering the circumstances, Jesse found rather odd. The moment their eyes met, the villager turned away and walked into a nearby room, away from her view. Jesse raised an eyebrow, curious about that one non-smiling villager.

As soon as they made it to the end of the hallway, the tour guide open a door and held out his hands to it, inviting them in. "Well, here's the dining room! Make yourselves comfortable while I go get some food."

The Order of the Stone glanced at each unsurely before Jesse nodded to her friends and walked into the room. Taking that as a sign that they should go in, her friends followed after her quickly. The moment they walked in, the door shut behind them and the tour guide walked away from the room.

Olivia checked to see if the door was locked behind them and was relieved that it wasn't. "Whew, looks like we aren't trapped in here. That's a good sign."

"Yeah, but did you see all those creepy villagers out there? We might not be locked in, but I still feel trapped with all those stares out there," Lukas said as he peeked out of the window on the door and saw that, indeed, all the villagers were watching the door with their smiling faces.

Jesse surveyed the room to make sure there wasn't any traps. It was a rather large room with one medium sized table and multiple chairs and two chandeliers hanging from the ceiling on both sides of the room. There were white placemats on the table with a potted flower placed right in the middle.

It seemed… harmless enough.

"So, are we actually going to get food or what?" Axel asked as he rubbed his stomach hungrily. "It feels like I haven't eaten in forever."

"Axel, Malia gave us some cake while we were on our way here," Olivia replied with a sigh.

"Yeah, and it was delicious! Kinda wish we brought some with us just in case the whole 'bringing us food thing' was a lie," Axel said wistfully.

"Aw man, now I'm hungry just thinking about it," Jesse said as she remembered the delicious frosted delight with such clarity. "Should have saved myself a piece."

"And now we all can't stop thinking about cake," Lukas said as he glared at Axel. "Thanks a lot, Axel," he added with a bit of sarcasm.

"Hey, I was just saying what I was feeling. No need to get snippy with me," Axel grumbled before crossing his arms and looked away from Lukas' glare.

Before Lukas could respond, the door to the dining hall opened and a purple cloaked villager walked in with a big smile and closed the door behind him.

"Ah, so you must be the humans that has graced this humble mansion with their presence!" The villager said as he walked over to Jesse and held out a hand in invitation for a friendly shake. "It's nice to meet you all!"

"Uh, nice to meet you too," Jesse responded and politely shook the hand the villager held out before returning her hand to her side. "And you are…?"

"Oh, how silly of me, I forgot to introduce myself! Silly me!" The villager said as he slapped a hand to his forehead, embarrassed at his forgetfulness. "I'm the owner of this mansion! My name is Eve."

"Wait… I thought villagers don't normally have names? Or at least names that they don't tell anyone," Olivia asked, her eyes narrowing suspiciously at the villager.

"I… suppose it is uncommon for us villagers to have names." Eve's smile faltered ever so slightly before it came back in full force. "But is it so bad to be uncommon? I quite liked the idea of having a name so I gave myself one."

"But isn't Eve a girl's name?" Axel asked as he rubbed the back of his head in thought.

"Hmm… no, I'm pretty sure Eve is a perfectly good name for a villager," He said with a shrug. "But enough about me. Come! Sit! Relax while my fellow villagers prepare you some nice dinner." He went over and sat at the table before he looked at the Order of the Stone expectantly.

The four friends followed the villager's example as they all pulled up their chairs and sat at the same dining table Eve. After everyone was sitting comfortably, Eve put his elbows on the table and held his face with his hand as he looked over at Jesse expectantly.

"Well, I introduced myself, but I haven't caught all of your names yet," Eve asked curiously. After the Order introduced themselves, Eve nodded as he committed those names to memory. "Hmm, fascinating names!" The villager said, looking very interested. "So, tell me about yourselves, humans. We don't see many adventurers around these parts and I am curious about the reason to why you're here," Eve asked, looking at Jesse eagerly.

"Oh, uh, well," Jesse mumbled as she considered what to say for a moment before answering. "There's been some villagers that were kidnapped in a nearby village and we got a tip that there might be someone with a motive to do so at this mansion."

"Yeah, Carter said there was supposed some grey villagers called illagers in this place," Axel said as he leaned back in his chair and stared at the villager. "But you guys look totally normal to me."

"Oh? Well, I can assure you we are not these things called illagers, my good fellow," Eve said cheerfully. Jesse wasn't sure, but she could have sworn his grin grew slightly bigger as he said that.

"So… who built this mansion?" Lukas asked as he looked at Eve suspiciously. "There's no way normal villagers could have built a place this big unless they had help."

"Actually, my ancestors found this place abandoned years ago," Eve said simply. "It was devoid of monsters, so they just moved in. We've been living here in peace ever since!" Eve said, his smile twitching ever so slightly. "But enough about me! Tell me about you four! Are you some sort of famous adventurers back where you all come from?"

"Well, we are the newly formed Order of the Stone. I guess we are pretty famous," Jesse said as she rubbed the back of her head modestly.

"Pretty famous? More like SUPER famous!" Axel said excitedly. "Everybody and their grandmas have heard all about us! I mean, we did stop a terrifying Witherstorm and saved the world!"

"Sounds like you four are very famous," Eve said, almost sounding quite pleased. "You all must have traveled quite far just to come to our little mansion."

"Little? This place is huge!" Olivia commented, remembering how massive the building looked from the outside. "And… I guess we did travel pretty far just to get here."

"I assume you humans rode on horses just to get here, yes? If it's as far as you said it is, then it's only reasonable you chose to get here by horse instead of walking here."

"Wait, why do you want to know how we got here?" Jesse asked, feeling increasingly uneasy the longer Eve asked them questions. What was the purpose of all those questions? It can't just be because of simple curiosity.

"Why, I'm just simply curious!" Eve said, the grin still wide on his face. "You four don't look tired so I'm assuming you didn't walk all this way."

Jesse paused for a moment as her eyes studied Eve's face before she answered. "Yeah… we did ride here by horse. We made a stable for them and left them there at the edge of the forest before we entered," Jesse lied.

Maybe it was best not to mention that they rode in on llamas led by Malia, just in case.

Her friends nodded in confirmation, unsure why Jesse would lie but went along with it.

"Ah, I knew it," Eve chuckled as he drummed his fingers on the table as he considered his next question. "I assume you found this mansion from a map or something of the sort. May I see it?"

"Uh…" Jesse did not have the map on her, having given it to Malia earlier. She didn't think it would bode well to lie and say that they didn't have a map and had found the mansion by chance.

So, instead of mentioning that, she lied some more.

"Sorry, but my inventory is such a mess right now. I have no idea where I put that thing. Let me see…" She pretended to shift through her inventory and dropped several of the balled-up papers that held her failed house designs onto the table. "Whoops, how embarrassing! I'm so sorry you had to see that!" Jesse chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of her head, trying to put on a convincing act.

"That's… fine, human Jesse," Eve stared at the balled-up papers with a look of annoyance. The smile on his face wavered for a moment but he still kept the line on his face from turning into a frown. "You may put your… uh, objects away, please."

"Right, right! Sorry you had to see that." Jesse quickly picked up her papers and put it back into her inventory.

"Wow… and I thought my inventory was clogged up," Axel hummed to himself, wondering why Jesse had all those pieces of balled-up paper in the first place.

"Anyway, pushing away the fact that me and Axel really need to clean our inventories, will that be all the questions you have for us?" Jesse stared at Eve, fully prepared to lie some more if she had to.

"Hm… I suppose that is all the questions I have," Eve chuckled and crossed his arms. "Thank you for answering my questions. The answers I received was… interesting."

"Right… interesting…" Jesse muttered before she cleared her throat. "We still have some questions for you, though."

The door to the dining room opened up again and four villagers with creepy, wide grins walked in and shut the door behind them. Jesse noticed that they weren't holding anything in their hands and she prepared herself to quickly take her sword out of inventory at a moment's notice. Every part of her instincts were screaming at her that something was very wrong.

"Ah, perfect timing!" Eve chuckled as he got up from his chair and went over to the villagers that had just entered before he turned around to smirk at the Order. "Sorry, but the time for questions is over. Now is the time to have a little… fun."

"What do you mean 'fun'?" Lukas asked. Something told him that the 'fun' they had in mind was not something he or his friends would like.

"Oh, you know, a little scuffle, a little tussle, and in the end… we'll just simply kill you," Eve began to laugh as if he said something funny.

"I knew this was a trap!" Jesse quickly got up from her seat and pulled out her sword and pointed it at the villager. Her friends also got up and raised their own weapons.

"Hah! You knew this whole thing was a trap and you walked right into it? How dumb can humans be?" Eve chuckled. As he did, the other four villagers dropped their smiles and gave the Order deathly glares.

"Wait, what kind of trap is this?" Axel asked, his fists raised and ready to punch. "'Cause as far as I can tell, we can totally take out a few villagers."

"Oho! You still think we're a bunch of useless villagers?" Eve laughed, as if he knew something they didn't.

"Well, you look like villagers. What else could you be?" Olivia asked in confusion. Could they be those 'illagers' they heard about from Carter? But they looked like totally normal villagers.

"Hehe, you're about to find out, stupid humans."

The moment those words left Eve's mouth, his entire body was suddenly covered in black oozing particles. It twisted and stretched all along his body until they disappeared just as quickly as they appeared. In the villager's place was something that looked like a villager, but his skin was grey and pale. His eyes looked like they were constantly glaring, despite the smirk still placed on his face. His purple robes were long gone and in their place were pitch black robes lined with a pale yellow stitching on its edges.

There was never a villager in the first place… only an illager.

"Wait, what in the-? How in the-?" Jesse looked at the illager, almost too stunned to form a complete sentence.

"Woah, woah, woah! What was that black stuff that was all over him?" Lukas asked, his mouth dropped in shock from Eve's transformation.

"Okay, Carter did not say anything about illager's looking like villagers! And then just… changing?" Olivia tried to make sense from what she had witnessed, but couldn't.

"Huh… that looked kinda gross… but also cool at the same time," Axel admitted.

"Hmm, like what you see, humans?" Eve asked as he stretched his arms before putting his hands up his sleeves and crossed his arms. "Because it's the last thing you'll see before we crush you like the little silverfish you are."

The four 'villagers' behind Eve were covered in the same black particles as he was only moments ago. A few seconds later, four grey skinned illagers stood in the place of the villagers, only they wore a different outfit than Eve. The four illager's wore a dark grey buttoned shirt with dark cyan striped pants. They then pulled out axes from their inventories and raised them up, ready to attack on their leader's command.

"Okay, what the heck is going on? How'd you change like that?" Jesse raised her sword threateningly and glared at Eve, prepared to take him down.

"Hmm, I suppose I could let you onto our little secrets as we're killing you. It'll probably be interesting to see the look on your face before you die," Eve chuckled as he raised his arms and glanced back at his fellow illagers. "I'll take care of the girl with the enchanted sword. You four take on those weaker looking humans. Just try not to have too much fun with them before your fellow vindicators decide to join us."

Just as Jesse was about to protest that her friends weren't weak, she heard a deep bell sound all around her. She suddenly felt the ground underneath her shift ever so slightly so she quickly jumped out of the way before a large grey old-looking tree log with giant fangs jutting from its top tried to take a bite out of her. Other fanged blocks appeared in a straight line across the room, separating her from her friends.

"Jesse!" Her friends called out to her as they ran up to the fanged blocks and tried to see a way across, but to no avail.

"Hang on, Jesse! We're coming," Axel called out before he tried punching the fanged block. Unfortunately, the moment he tried to punch it, the fang block reached out and bit his fist, causing his body to flash red as he took damage. "Ow!" He quickly pulled his fist out of the thing's mouth and held it close to him as he felt it throb painfully. "Uh, we're coming... eventually."

Before Jesse could say anything, she saw the four axe wielding vindicators rush forth and ran through the fanged blocks harmlessly. "Guys, look out!"

"I suggest you worry less about your friends and more about dying quickly. I'd like to have a little fun before I steal your form," Eve mocked her before he raised his arms again. Only, instead of more fanged blocks appearing, two tiny pale blue ghosts appeared from puffs of smoke around him. Their faces turned red and red veins appeared along their bodies before they charged Jesse. She quickly dodged their charge and slashed her sword at them, causing the little ghosts to groan in pain.

Jesse faced away from the fanged wall separating her and her friends and it took all her willpower to keep her sight on Eve. As much as she wanted to help her friends in their fight, she had no choice but to focus on the illager in front of her.

As much as she worried about them… she had to let them fight their own battles.

"Guys, be careful over there, okay?" She called out to her friends as she saw the little ghosts that had charged at her earlier float over her as if they were mocking her.

"Don't worry about us, Jesse! We got this!" She heard Axel say before she heard him grunt and heard a thud behind her.

"Yeah, we can take out a couple illagers that really look like they need a tan." Jesse heard Lukas joke confidentially before she heard a clash of metal.

"Just… be careful over there. Okay, Jesse?" She heard Olivia, worry in her friend's tone of voice.

Steeling herself mentally, Jesse smirked to herself. "I'll be fine! I usually am, right?" She raised her sword in front of her and tightened her grip. "I'll see you guys in a little bit, okay?"

And with that, she charged at Eve with new determination.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

"Uh, we can take out these things, right guys?" Olivia asked, staying behind Lukas and Axel as they fought the vindicators in front of them. She pulled back the string of her bow and shot it at a vindicator, only for it to dodge out of the way.

"Come on, just because they have axes doesn't mean they aren't any different from villagers," Axel said as he punched one vindicator in the face, causing it to fly across the room and into a wall.

"Yeah, but they're not villagers. They're illagers with axes," Lukas said as he barely dodged an axe swing. He might have sounded confident when he called out to Jesse, but in reality… he was worried. He wondered if they had anymore tricks up their sleeves or if they could transform into anything else.

Lukas might have been scared… but he wasn't planning on getting killed by some dumb-looking illagers who REALLY looked like they needed to go to a beach and go sunbathing.

Two vindicators slammed their axes into the floor, causing them to be stuck in the ground. Then the same black particles from before covered their bodies. Only this time, the black particles stretched their bodies until they were taller and skinnier. The black particles quickly disappeared…

… and in their place were endermen.

The newly formed endermen let out a screech before they reached down and picked up the axes that they had stabbed into the floor moments ago when they were still vindicators. The moment they picked them back up, they teleported away, leaving behind a few purple particles.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me," Lukas groaned as he slashed at a vindicator, causing it to groan in pain. "Now we have to deal with axe-welding endermen!"

"That would have been so cool if they weren't about to cut our heads off," Axel said as he noticed one enderman appear in front of him. Before he could punch it, however, it disappeared in a blink of an eye. "Oh come on! That has got to be cheating!"

"I really don't think they have rules to cheat from, Axel," Olivia looked around cautiously. Out of all the mobs that the vindicators could have transformed into, it _had_ to have been endermen.

Suddenly, an enderman appeared in front of Olivia and screeched at her before raising their axe, ready to strike. Olivia yelped in panic and held her bow in front of her like a shield and closed her eyes, waiting for the moment the axe came down.

The hit never came as Olivia felt herself get pulled back and she heard to the enderman screech in pain before she heard it teleport away. She opened her eyes cautiously and saw Axel standing next to her, fist raised in a punch and his arm around her protectively.

"Whew… thanks Axel." Olivia breathed out a shaky breath that she didn't know she was holding.

"Hey, I got your back," Axel smirked down at her before he looked around the room and grinned. "I just got an awesome idea!"

"Wha-" Before Olivia could state her question, she felt him lift her off the floor and, the next thing she knew, Axel was holding her above his head.

"Alright, when I throw you, just grab onto that chandelier, okay?" Axel said as he pulled his arms back, prepared to throw his friend.

"AX-" Before she could protest, Axel threw her up into the air and towards the chandelier, "-EEEEEEEL!" Her arms flailed for a moment before she reached out and grabbed onto the top of the chandelier and lifted her legs up and wrapped them around a wooden fence post that was holding out a torch. "AXEL, ARE YOU INSANE?!" She yelled out, hoping that the wooden fence post that held the chandelier didn't break from her weight.

"Now you don't have to worry about endermen teleporting next to you!" He called up to her as he punched another vindicator, causing it to groan in agony. "You can even use your bow to shoot down at these guys!"

"Does it look like I'm in a position to do anything right now?!" Olivia snapped at her friend. She tried to carefully let go of the top of the chandelier before she felt her body tilt to the side, about to fall. She quickly held onto the chandelier again and hugged it like her life depended on it. "There's no way I can shoot at them like this!"

"Huh… you know, this went a lot better in my head," Axel hummed to himself as he saw an enderman appear next to him and quickly backed away before it could axe his head off.

"Seriously, Axel?" Lukas glared at him as he leaned back and avoided an axe swing. "Now it's four against two! This doesn't exactly help us."

Though, Lukas had to admit, it was surprisingly quick thinking on Axel's part. Olivia was a long-rang fighter and had experience in redstone traps. In such close quarters with close-range axe-wielding vindicators swinging their axes at them every chance they got, Olivia was at a serious disadvantage. Keeping her up and away from all the fighting was probably a lot safer for her. It actually seemed like a great idea.

But would Lukas ever admit that to Axel? Not in this lifetime.

"Aw, come on! I thought it was a good idea at the time!" Axel complained as he threw a punch at an enderman, only for it to teleport away. "Agh! Quit teleporting away, you stupid jerks!"

"Telling them to quit doing it will only make them do it more!" Lukas told Axel, barely avoiding another axe swipe from a vindicator. The longer he was dodging those axe swings, the more tired Lukas felt. He didn't know how long it would take before the axes started hitting him and do serious damage. "Got any more bright ideas? One that doesn't involve throwing me too?"

"Aw, and I was thinking of throwing you at them. So much for that idea," Axel chuckled. He wasn't actually going to throw Lukas at the vindicators; he just wanted to rib Lukas on. "Hmm… hey, we can always use plan T!"

"Then just- ow- do it already!" Lukas said as a vindicator slashed at his side, causing him flash red for a moment. He retaliated and stabbed the vindicator in the chest, causing it to scream in pain before its body went poof, dropping its loot.

One down, three to go.

"Okay, okay! I'm on it!" Axel said as he pulled out a block of TNT and placed it on the ground. Just as he was about to light with a flint and steel, the other vindicator leapt at Axel and held onto his arm, trying to prevent him from lighting it. "Hey! Let go!"

Lukas leaned on the wall holding his side in pain and was about to call out to Axel before the two axe-wielding endermen appeared before him and started to close in on him. "Axel, light it! NOW!"

"Aaaaaand got it!" Using his superior strength, Axel fought against the vindicator's hold and lit the TNT, causing it to light up as it prepared to explode.

That was just what Lukas needed.

Pulling out the fishing rod from his inventory, he cast the line at the TNT and hooked onto it. Then, with the last bit of his strength, he pulled at the line and caused the TNT to fly through the air before it hit one of the endermen in the back.

Before both endermen could teleport away, it exploded and they were caught in the blast. As they were killed in the explosion, their bodies disappeared in a puff of smoke and dropped their loot.

"Woah… nice one!" Axel called out to Lukas before he grabbed onto the last vindicator and body slammed it. With that one last hit, the vindicator went up in a puff of smoke and dropped its loot as well.

"I can't believe it… that actually worked. I thought for sure I'd blow myself up." Lukas still held the fishing rod in front of him in shock. He had honestly expected he would die from doing something so… so… insane!

But it worked! He's alive! Axel's alive! Olivia's alive!

They all survived!

"Uh… guys? Can I come down now?" Olivia called down to them, still clinging onto the chandelier.

"Oh! Right! Coming!" Axel answered back. He went over to where Olivia was hanging from and held out his arms. "I'll catch you!"

"Alright… just try not to miss me," Olivia said warily as she carefully tried to position herself to where her friend would catch her and let go.

Axel definitely caught her…

With his head.

The moment she landed on top of him, the two of them toppled to the ground.

Lukas tried to keep himself from laughing at the sight. He felt it was karma from all the times Axel landed on him and he was enjoying every moment of it.

"... Ow," Axel groaned in pain.

"Oh my gosh! Axel, are you okay?" Olivia quickly got off of him and held out her hand.

"Yeah, I'm totally fine!" Axel took her offer and pulled himself up. "In fact, I feel awesome! We just defeated a bunch of illagers!"

"Yeah, but there's still that Eve guy that Jesse's fighting," Lukas said as he walked over to him, holding his side in pain. It wasn't as bad as before, but it still stung. "You didn't happen to see how she was doing, did you Olivia?"

"From what I could tell, she was doing well fighting him and those weird ghost things," Olivia said as she looked over at the wall of fanged blocks still blocking their path. "But I wish I could be over there helping her." Even though Olivia knew that Jesse would hold her own against Eve, she still couldn't help but worry.

"Yeah… me too," Lukas said before he let out a deep sigh. He turned his gaze towards Axel and frowned for a moment before he spoke again. "Hey, Axel? You did pretty well back there. With fighting those illagers and all."

"Well, yeah, of course I did. I'm awesome!" Axel said before he looked at Lukas for a moment before turning his gaze away and rubbed the back of his head. "I guess you were awesome too. That was pretty cool with the fishing rod and the TNT and stuff."

"Yeah. Cool." Lukas rubbed his arm and looked away, wanting to put their awkward conversation behind them.

"Hey guys?" Olivia looked down at the floor when she spotted something and knelt down. "Did you guys check out what those illagers dropped?"

"No, why?" Lukas asked, looking down to where Olivia was kneeling and his eyes widened. "Wait, what is that?"

Laying on the ground was a thin blue squared amulet attached to a thin white string that was wrapped around a small hole at the top. On the blue square was a black symbol of a person. Picking it up, Olivia noticed that when she moved it around, the picture of the person changed into symbols of different creatures. From a spider, to a rabbit, and even to a Wither.

"Woah, moving pictures," Axel stared at the strange object in awe.

"Guys, all the illagers had that same object," Lukas said as he looked to where the other illagers had died and saw that they, too, had dropped the same amulet. He went over and picked one off the ground and looked at it. "I think this is what let those illagers transform into those villagers and endermen."

"Woah, that's so awesome!" Axel picked the last two amulets off the ground and looked at them in awe. "I wonder if this means we'll be able to change into mobs too!"

"Axel, why would you even want to?" Olivia stood back up and looked at the amulet strangely.

"Because it'd be cool! Duh!" Axel excitedly put one around his neck and put his fists on his sides. "Let's go! Time to become a creeper!"

Nothing happened.

Axel blinked, looking down at the amulet he was wearing and frowned. "Huh… is it broken?"

Before Lukas and Olivia could say anything, the fanged blocks that was blocking them from Jesse let out a pained roar before diving back into the floor, never to be seen again.

Olivia, Axel and Lukas looked over towards the other side of the room to see the aftermath of the battle…

* * *

 **A/N: Did I mention there's going to be mods featured in this story? No? Well, there is. :3c**

 **Obviously I'm not going to explain everything about what a mod does (I'll let the story explain), but I will tell you what mod it's from. Maybe you'd want to look them up if you feel like it. :P**

 ** _Morph Mod_ : A rather popular mod and one of my personal favorites. I mean, come on, you get to change into all kinds of different mobs! How cool is that! :D**

 ** _Witchery Mod_ : Remember those potions that kidnapper threw at the Order of the Stone? Yeah, it's from that mod. There's a few other things from the mod that will appear in the story and I _could_ say what they'd be, but that'd be spoilers. :3c**

 **ANYWAY, looks like I am splitting the chapter into two parts. Looks like you'll have to learn Jesse's fate in the next chapter. xD**

 **My favorite part of the chapter has to be when Axel throws Olivia onto the chandelier. That was just... beautiful. :,D**

 **Until next time... arrivederci!**


	8. Episode 1: Chapter 7

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

Steeling herself mentally, Jesse smirked to herself. "I'll be fine! I usually am, right?" She raised her sword in front of her and tightened her grip. "I'll see you guys in a little bit, okay?"

And with that, she charged at Eve with new determination.

"Oh, I'm so sure you'll meet your dear friends again…" Eve chuckled before he raised his arms in the air, "…In the afterlife!"

A familiar deep ring sounded all around Jesse and she quickly moved to side as she barely avoided the fanged blocks rising from the ground as they tried to bite her. Missing their target, they slid back into the ground and disappeared.

"Oh, so you've learned how to dodge my evocation fangs, hmm?" Eve smirked, clearly enjoying their little 'game'. "I wonder how long you'll be able to keep avoiding them while my little vexes try to cut you down!"

The little ghosts called vexes started to circle Jesse again, laughing at her in their little squeaky and annoying voice. Their face and body turned red again as they raised their tiny swords and charged at Jesse. She quickly dodged them before she slashed at one of them, killing the little ghost in the process.

… Jesse briefly wondered how it was possible to kill a ghost, but decided that it wasn't the time to be wondering about something like that.

"I can dodge them all day if I have to!" Jesse said confidently, even though she knew she couldn't really dodge them forever. Dodging fangs that rose from the ground AND flying laughing ghosts for very long would tire anyone out.

But she couldn't let Eve know that. She wouldn't let him get an edge on her.

Eve frowned at her confidence before he smirked and raised his arms again. "We'll see about that."

The same deep ring sounded all around before Jesse leaped to the side and avoided yet another line of evocation fangs. Then, she began running towards the illager and raised her sword as she prepared to land a blow on him.

Eve raised his arms quickly and the bell sounded as fanged blocks circled the illager, protecting him. Skidding to a halt, Jesse stopped just before she ran into circle of fangs and backed away from Eve as quickly as possible.

"Hah hah! Nice try, human!" Eve reached out and petted the fangs, similar to how a human would do to a cat or a pig. "But with my creations protecting me, there's no way to reach me. So I suggest you give up now. If you do, I might be merciful and give you a quick and painless death," He said before he chuckled. "Or maybe not. Who knows? It'll depend on my mood."

"There's no way I'm letting you kill me!" Jesse responded confidently, even if she was starting to get a little worried. With the fangs blocking her from Eve, that didn't leave her with many options. Or rather, the only option: keep dodging and hope for the best.

Argh, why couldn't she have brought a bow? She could have shot through the evocation fang blocks and the battle would've ended in a flash. But no, she didn't think of preparing herself before they left home. If only Olivia or Lukas was around…

"Oh, I'm afraid you don't have much choice in the matter. I'm going to kill you and I'll take your form in the process! I'm feeling giddy just thinking about it!" Eve laughed to himself.

"What do you mean by 'take your form'?" Jesse wondered as she avoid the final vex that charged at her before she sliced the tiny ghost, causing it to disappear in a puff of smoke.

She recalled that Eve mentioned something about 'stealing her form' before, but Jesse had no idea what it could possibly mean. Did it have something to do with how Eve looked like a simple villager before?

"But of course!" Eve lifted his arms as he summoned three more vexes before they charged at Jesse with their sword drawn. "If I kill you, then I'll have gained your form. Just imagine what I could do if I looked just like you." Eve smirked. "If your friends somehow survive the onslaught of my vindicators, I could simply pretend to be you and lure them into a false sense of security. Then I'd lead them into another trap and watch the looks on their faces as they get killed by my fellow illagers. Oh, how fun that would be~!"

As Jesse avoided the newly spawned vexes, her eyes widened and she looked horrified at Eve's words before she glared at him with killing intent and gripped her sword tighter. "You're insane! There's no way I'll let ANYTHING like that happen! My form is mine and mine alone!" She said, determined to kill Eve before he even had the chance to kill her.

"Ah, normally it would be… but with THIS…!" Eve pulled a blue square from his sleeve and held it in front of him. "THIS makes it all possible! Just kill something or someone you'd want to look like and you can change to it at will! Such an astounding amulet!"

"Wait, seriously? How is that even possible? Where did you even get that?" Jesse asked as she killed another vex.

With Eve gloating like he had already won, maybe she could get more information from him while she looked for a way to kill him while avoiding those stupid fanged blocks and ghosts. Maybe see if she could get the location of the kidnapped villagers from him too.

Though, with all those villagers in the hallway that were more than likely just illagers that had taken the form of villagers, it was more than likely that… they'd…

"Oh, we received such a fascinating object from a generous benefactor! It's funny… the human just appeared one day and offered us a deal. We would take the object and held onto it while we killed weakling mobs while he, at our request, would go to a village and steal villagers for us," Eve said as he slipped the amulet back up his sleeve and lifted his arms as he called upon more evocation fangs. "Normally, I'd kill any human who dared set foot into our mansion, but I couldn't let an offer like that get away!"

"Wait, so some guy just showed up and gave you some magic rock that lets you transform and you got him to… kidnap villagers?" Jesse asked as she barely avoided the fangs just as a few vexes charged at her. "Why would you even want to kidnap innocent villagers in the first place?"

That kidnapper… he was the one that gave the illagers those amulets. What possible reason could he have had when he gave those amulets to them? Just… why?

"Innocent?!" Eve snapped at Jesse, his face twisted in anger. "Those villagers are the descendants of the ones who kicked my ancestors out of the villager, causing them to become outcasts!" He spat out as he raised his arms and summoned more fangs. "My ancestors simply didn't want to follow those accursed traditions of the village and that made those villagers fear us! Just because my ancestors wanted be stronger than humans and actually fight to defend themselves, that meant my ancestors had to be kicked out?!" He lowered his face, causing it to be darkened by shadows. "They deserve to suffer and be killed by my kind."

"Woah!" Jesse quickly backed away from the onslaught of fangs and felt her back slam into the table behind her. She put a hand on top of the table to keep herself steady as she glared at Eve. "That doesn't excuse what you're doing! Those villagers aren't the same as the ones in the past. You're just letting bitterness and the need for revenge cloud your better judgement! In fact, I don't think you're doing this for revenge, at least not anymore! You're just a crazy psycho!"

"Hah, what do you know? Such a naïve human girl… you know nothing about how villagers truly are. Villagers will NEVER change. They will always be blinded by their traditions and they will always let those stronger than them walk all over them." Eve then grinned sinisterly. "That's why I planned on taking over their village and wiping them all out. With these amulets, we'll be able to pretend to be 'innocent' villagers and kill any human that dares come anywhere near us."

"So, that's why you had that kidnapper take the villagers… you wanted to kill them and take their form so that you could set your plan in motion, didn't you?" Jesse visibly deflated after she killed the last two vexes that charged at her.

Those poor villagers… they never stood a chance.

"Ahah, yes! At least, that was my plan at first. Then our benefactor told us that we may receive a few extra guests soon. That's when I thought 'hmm, maybe we can take on human forms and infiltrate their little towns and take them down one by one once we kill off those villagers'! The thought filled me with such joy that I couldn't pass it up!" Eve laughed and lifted his arms again as he summoned more fangs.

"And that's why- agh- why you asked us those questions. You wanted to know about us!" Jesse avoided the fangs, but almost tripped over a chair in the process. She almost scolded herself for doing something so clumsy, but she stared at the chair for a moment before she put a hand to her chin as an idea popped into her head. Maybe…

"Hmm, how sharp. Yes, I was curious about the humans whose form that me and my fellow illagers would take," Eve said and raised his arms as he summoned even more vexes. "I was rather pleased to learn your group was quite famous!" A sinister laugh. "Just imagine the look on the human's faces as they're killed by the very people they dubbed 'heroes'! How frightened they'll look when their beloved heroes started killing them off! Oh, how fun that would be~!"

"Sorry, but you're not having anymore 'fun' by the time we're through!" Jesse said as she picked up the chair from the ground and ran towards Eve while avoiding the ghostly vexes that were beginning to circle their prey.

"And how exactly are you planning to stop me? You can't even reach me!" Eve chuckled as he lifted his arms.

As soon as Jesse was close enough and as soon as she heard the deep ringing of the invisible bells, she placed the chair on the ground and quickly stood on top of it and held onto its back.

As soon as the ringing stopped, a line of evocation fangs shot up out of the ground and tried to snap at Jesse…

… Or at least, one of them tried to.

The moment a fanged block poked out from underneath Jesse, it pushed the chair up and tried to clamp down onto her chair. While it did chomp down onto the bottom of the chair, it held it up into the air firmly. It was just high enough that Jesse could try to jump over the circle of evocation fangs and finally get to Eve.

"Wh-what?!" Eve stared in surprised at what had occurred and tried to call on more Vexes…

…But it was too late.

"Hey Eve!" Jesse called down as she carefully balanced on the chair and glared down at him. " _Fangs_ for nothing!"

On a wing and a prayer, Jesse used the chair like a springboard and jumped over the fanged blocks. Her sword held in both hands, she brought the sword down onto the illager…

…. And straight through his chest, close to where his heart would be if he had one.

Eve screamed in agony as he was struck and collapsed to the ground. The fanged blocks around Eve roared in pain before they sunk back into the ground, never to be seen again. The ghosts faded away, as if they never existed.

Jesse had defeated Eve singlehandedly.

Barely.

"Looks like its game, set, match, Eve," Jesse said in a shaky breath as she stood up and wiped the sweat off her brow, relieved to have pulled herself through in a close battle.

"You… you…" Eve choked out as he looked at the sword stuck in his chest and scowled at it. He had lost to a human! He had disgraced the illager name and let himself be struck down so easily! He tried to move his body, despite it screaming in pain, but found he couldn't even move.

The only thing left for Eve was to wait for death itself.

"Jesse!" The victorious girl heard very familiar voices behind her. She quickly turned around and her face broke into a grin as soon as she saw her three friends running over to her, alive and well.

"Guys! You're all okay!" She rushed over to her friends to greet them, only for the words to halt in her throat as both Axel and Olivia tackled her and trapped her in a bear hug. "Woah, guys! Missed you too."

"Sorry, Jesse. I was just really worried and I'm just happy to see you're okay." Olivia released her friend and rubbed her arm shyly. "You looked like you were doing alright with Eve, but I still worry, you know?"

"Hey, I'm just happy that guy didn't kill you and turned into you. That would have been total nightmare fuel," Axel said as he let go Jesse and rubbed the back of his head. "Kinda wish I could have seen your fight, though. It was probably so cool and death defying and completely awesome."

"Way to go, Jesse! You did it!" Lukas said as he walked over to his friend and, instead of going for a hug, raised his hand up as an invitation for a high five.

"Thanks!" Jesse supplied Lukas with a high five before giving her friends a big smile. "Looks like you guys did it too! I bet you all kicked some serious butt."

"Well, those two did. I was too busy being stuck on a chandelier to help," Olivia said before she put her hands on her hips and glared at Axel. " _Right_ , Axel?"

"Aw, come on, I thought it was a good idea at the time," Axel grumbled as he crossed his arms and looked away.

"A chandelier? Okay, I have to hear this," Jesse chuckled as she looked over at Olivia with a raised eyebrow.

"Y… you…" A pained, raspy voice groaned behind Jesse.

The smile dropped from her face as she turned around and looked at Eve, still collapsed on the ground with her sword still stuck in his chest. "What is it now? It's over; you've lost."

"To… to be defeated… by a human…" Eve coughed as he began to chuckle. "Me… an Evoker… lost…"

"Hey, wait a second…" Axel put a hand to his chin as if he'd thought of something. "Eve… Evoker… Eve… Evoker… Eve…" He mumbled to himself before he slapped his forehead in realization. "Oh, I get it now!" Axel then looked at Eve with a raised eyebrow. "Wow, dude, you could have been a lot more creative when coming up with a name."

Ignoring the large human, Eve continued to talk. "You think… you humans have won. But there are… many more illagers… in this mansion. They… will come… and kill you all."

"I'm afraid there are no more illagers still present in this mansion. Besides you, that is," A deep voice that came from nowhere spoke, surprising the Order and Eve.

"Wait… I recognize that voice," Jesse said as she looked around the room, trying to figure out where the voice had come from. "You're that kidnapper! Show yourself!"

"Hmm… if that is what you want, then I will oblige."

The kidnapper, as if on a whim, faded into existence and stood right next to Eve. He wore a dark brown hood and a black mask that covered the top half of his face. His eyes appeared to be all white, but Jesse wondered if it was a part of the mask itself. His skin was a pale pink and he wore a black sleeveless shirt with straps hanging off one side and he wore black gloves. His pants were brown like his hood but there were light brown plates with a silver lining on his knees and his boots were the same color as the knee plates.

Overall, Jesse got the feeling that if she tried to mess with this guy, she'd be dead in less than ten seconds without even knowing how it happened.

"You… you…!" Eve looked up at the mysterious kidnapper, eyes widening in surprise. "You said you weren't… planning on fighting."

"I wasn't," the man said in a deadpan tone before he shrugged. "Or at least, I wasn't going to fight your guests. I never said I wouldn't fight the rest of the illagers in the mansion." He bent down and looked Eve right in the eyes. "Simply put, I killed them. You're the last illager left… though, from the look of that sword in your chest, you won't be around for much longer."

Eve tensed as he heard the words from the man and glared at him with a deathly stare. "You… you! Traitor!"

"Now that would imply that I was loyal to you in the first place…" the kidnapper stood back up and shrugged. "But I was _never_ loyal to you. I actually hate you and I'll be glad once you're finally gone," he said with a hint of venom in his tone.

Eve coughed in pain as he began to growl. "You… you killed off all my vindicators so easily… you should have died… before you killed off that many."

"Hmm… I suppose if I was inexperienced and unprepared, I would have," The mysterious man said before he began to chuckle and gave a wry grin. "Isn't it amazing what a simple enhanced Potion of Swiftness can do? They never saw me coming."

"I… I'll…" Eve began to say before he began to cough violently, the sword moving slightly in his chest as he did.

"You'll what? Kill me? I'm afraid from where I'm standing, you're the one that will be killed," the kidnapper bent down and looked at Eve in the eyes again. "Though, before you do die, I have one last thing to say to you." The lower part of his face was expressionless and his tone was emotionless. "…You brought this onto yourself."

Eve glared at the man and tried to speak, but found that his voice was lost. Then, with a strained gurgle, his head tilted to the side before his entire body poofed into white smoke and dropped the amulet he was holding and a strange doll-like item onto the ground. The diamond sword that was in Eve's chest clanged onto the floor, having completed its job.

"Hmm… I almost pity him," the kidnapper muttered as he picked up the doll and the amulet off the ground and stared at both objects for a moment. He then put the amulet into his inventory and began to toss the doll up into the air and caught it like it was toy. " _Almost_. He was a power hungry fool and the world will be better off without him."

" _Hey!_ "

The kidnapper looked over to the Order of the Stone and noticed that they had gotten into a fighting position, glaring at the mysterious man and watched every move he made. He looked over at Jesse, having heard her call to him, and tilted his head slightly. "Yes?"

"You're that guy who kidnapped all those villagers from their homes, right?" Jesse accused as she stepped forward and pointed at the man. "I'm going to ask you some questions and I expect you to answer them. It's about time we hear what you have to say for yourself. Understand?"

The kidnapper stopped tossing the doll into the air as if he was considering Jesse's demand before he shrugged. "I suppose it's a possibility, but it would depend on the actual questions."

Jesse narrowed her eyes at the hooded man before she asked her first question. "First of all, who are you?"

The kidnapper was silent for a moment before he spoke, "You may call me… Culain."

"Alright, _Culain_ ," Jesse said his name with disdain. "Why in the Nether did you give those illagers those amulets? What could you have possibly gained for doing that?"

"That… is really none of your concern," Culain said in a deadpan tone. "I see no benefit for you to know such information, so there is no point in telling you."

"No bene-!" Jesse was about to yell out before she took a deep breath and glared at him. " _Fine_. Next question: Why did you kidnap those villagers for the illagers?"

"Because they wouldn't do as I asked of them if I did not assist in their foolish plan," Culain said before he shrugged. "I would have preferred not to, but I didn't have many other options."

"Well, you helping them sent a whole bunch of villagers to their deaths!" Jesse snapped angrily at the mysterious man and her friends nodded in agreement.

"I am aware of what I did," The kidnapper spoke in an emotionless tone. "But what's done is done. I have gotten everything I needed from those illagers and I no longer need to kidnap villagers anymore. So you can tell that village that they no longer have to worry about me taking them at night."

"Quit acting so nonchalant about this!" Jesse raised her fist in the air, wanting to punch his lights out. "Do you not feel guilty about what you did? Do you not feel anything at all?"

Culain was silent for a moment before he spoke. "Is that all you have to ask of me? I have other places to be."

"Uh, yeah! I have a question!" Axel raised his hand up and pointed at the amulet he was wearing. "Do you have any other cool stuff like this amulet? 'Cause I'd love to have it."

The mysterious man looked exasperated at Axel's question and turned back to Jesse. "Any other questions that aren't a waste of my time?"

"Not really a question, but more of a demand," Jesse said as she glared at Culain. "You are coming with us to the village and you are going to pay for what you did to those villagers!"

Culain was silent for a moment before he spoke, "I did not actually kill any villagers with my own hands."

"Maybe not, but you still sent them to the chopping block. That makes you more than responsible for their deaths!"

"Point taken," The impassive man said as he glanced over at the door and then back to the Order who was still watching his every move. "I suppose you're not going to let me go without a fight, huh?"

"You got that right!" Jesse said as her friends raised their weapons in agreement.

"You're not going anywhere!" Lukas pointed his sword at the mystery man, who seemed unamused at Lukas' declaration.

"There's no way you can take out all of us," Axel said confidently.

"Uh… didn't he take out an entire mansion of illagers all by himself?" Olivia asked, glancing at Axel while her bow was still pointed at Culain.

"Oh… right…" Axel frowned, remembering what the kidnapper had said. "Uh… we can still take him, right?"

"Your friend with the bow is right. Just by looking at you four, I can tell that you're no real match for me," The impassive man said before he looked over at Jesse and pointed at the sword that was on the ground next to him. "You don't even have a sword and yet you still wish to take me on?"

"Ah…" Jesse frowned and her eyebrows furrowed as she looked down at her sword. She almost forgot about that part.

"Psst, Jesse? You need to borrow my sword?" Lukas asked his friend as he lifted his iron sword up and offered the hilt to her.

"There's no need for that." Culain nudged the diamond sword on the ground with his foot before he kicked it towards the owner. The sword skidded across the floor until it stopped right in front of Jesse.

"Uh… thanks?" Jesse said unsurely as she picked her sword off the ground and pointed it at the mysterious man.

"Mm-hm," Culain mumbled before he tapped his chin with a finger as if he was considering something. "Hmm, how about a proposition?" He said before he pointed at Jesse. "You, and only you, fight me in a little duel. I won't use any potions or any other tricks up my sleeves at you and we will only use swords. If you win, I'll willingly go with your group and you may perform whatever punishment you deem worthy of my crimes. If I win, however, you let me go. Understand?"

Jesse blinked at Culain's proposal and mulled it over in her head. On one hand, if she agreed, she would be fighting the impassive man alone. Though, that meant that he wouldn't be using any potions against her, which meant that they would be on equal footing when it came to weapons.

But, on the other hand, if she declined his offer, then her and her friends could try to stop him as a team. That meant, however, that Culain would fight with his potions (plus whatever else he had) and there's no way for her to know what kinds of things he would throw at them. How could she know? He might have something worse than that zombie potion the kidnapper used on Lukas or that potion that released those cobwebs Olivia and Axel were covered in before…

In the end, Jesse made up her mind.

"You're on, Mr. Kidnapper!" Jesse smiled confidently, her sword raised in the air.

"… Something told me you'd agree to the terms. Very well then." Culain slipped the doll into his inventory then pulled out his own diamond sword and pointed the tip towards Jesse. "Shall we begin?"

"Woah, woah, woah! Jesse, are you sure you want to be fighting this guy alone?" Lukas stepped up to his friend and looked at her pleadingly. "This guy just screams 'serious business.' Besides, how do you know he'll hold up his end of the deal?"

"I'm going to have to agree with Lukas, Jesse," Olivia stepped up to friend, her eyes filled with worry. "This guy took out all those illagers and we barely took out the ones we did. He might be on a whole other level than us."

"Yeah, I say we pound the guy down as a team and drag him back to the village ourselves. He doesn't look that tough," Axel said as he looked over at Culain and gave him a once over before turning back to Jesse. "… Okay, he looks a little tough, but I say we can still take him if we work together!"

Jesse looked at her friends and then back at the mysterious man who was waiting patiently for their conversation to finish. She then looked back at her friends and smiled reassuringly. "Guys, I'll be fine. Besides, if he does anything suspicious, you guys can step in and help me out, okay?"

Her three friends looked at each with worried glances, unsure if they should keep trying to convince her to reconsider or listen to Jesse and let her handle it until things looked dicey.

Taking their silence as the end of their conversation, Jesse stepped forward and pointed the tip of her sword at Culain. "I'm ready when you are!"

"Very well. Let our duel commence," Culain said before he looked at the three onlookers for the duel and pointed at them with his finger. "And don't try to interfere. Not that you could, at any rate."

Lukas was about to step forward to ask what the mysterious man meant when he walked into something hard, stumbling backwards and held his black eye as the pain swelled up again, having walked face first into… something. Lukas reached his hand out and touched something he couldn't see. "What the-?!" He began to push at what felt like an invisible wall and found that it wouldn't budge.

Confused, Axel and Olivia also tried to reach forward only to find that the same invisible wall that was blocking Lukas was also blocking them. Looking closely at the wall, there were tiny, barely visible white and yellow particles floating in the air where the invisible wall was.

"I feel like something's there… I just can't see it!" Axel pushed at the wall with all his strength, but it was all in vain. Whatever the wall was made from, it was made from something tough.

Olivia tried to walk around the wall, only to meet with another wall blocking her. "Wait, how did- when did you-?" She stammered, looking at the kidnapper who looked indifferent to what they were experiencing.

In short, they were boxed in by invisible walls and they had no idea how the kidnapper could have done it without them noticing anything strange.

Jesse looked at her suddenly trapped friends in shock before she set her sights on Culain and glared daggers at him. "Hey! I thought you said that you wouldn't pull any tricks!"

"I also said 'at you'. I never said I wouldn't do anything to your friends." He shrugged. "But I wouldn't worry about them. They're completely fine and the barrier should wear off by the time our little match is over. It's just a precaution that they don't try anything idiotic and try to interfere. Like, say, trying to throw a block of TNT at me when they think I least expect it."

"That sounds kinda paranoid," Axel said.

After a moment, he crossed his arms and mumbled, "But also true… I would totally throw some TNT at him."

Jesse looked back at her friends before setting her sights on the kidnapper and gripped her sword tighter. " _Fine_. Let's just get this over with."

"Alright then." Culain raised his sword as he prepared himself. "Ladies choice: Do you want me to attack first or do you want to go instead?"

" _I'll_ go first," Jesse replied, preparing herself to charge at the mystery man. Then, as fast as she could, she sprinted at Culain and raised her sword as she prepared to bring it down on him.

Culain raised his diamond sword in the air and caught the blade with it, the sound of clashing metal resonating throughout the room as it did. He leapt back just as Jesse started to use more force against the sword and raised the sword to his side as he prepared for Jesse's next sword strike.

Jesse almost stumbled forward as Culain leapt back, but quickly caught herself as she tried to follow his movements and tried to slash at him from bellow, only for him to quickly parry the attack and backed away once more before he brought the sword to his side and tried to attack Jesse with a side slash. She dodged the slash by moving backwards and her eyes settled on the chair that she had used to destroy Eve and quickly sidestepped her way towards it, her sword still held in a position to attack Culain if he tried to attack her again.

Culain began to rush at her as he held his sword at his side again and prepared to slash at her. Jesse quickly rolled out of the way and stood back up next to the chair. She grabbed it and raised it in front of her just as Culain raised his sword above him and brought it down, only for it to be stopped by the wooden chair as it cut deeply into it, causing it to be stuck. Jesse quickly used that as an opportunity to side step and try to attack him at his side. He, however, brought his sword to his side just as Jesse's sword tried to make contact, causing the chair that was stuck to the sword to be sliced in half and it disappeared into a puff of smoke. Jesse quickly back away and held her sword in front of her, disappointed that the chair that had helped her defeat Eve had been destroyed.

Goodbye, beloved chair. You would be missed.

"I must say, I'm impressed to see how you handled yourself so far," Culain complimented her, despite him not actually sounding impressed and continued to speak in an emotionless tone. He raised his sword up in a defensive position as he prepared for Jesse's next move. "You are rather agile and adapt to your environment to help you fight. You also seem to be rather observant and seem to plan things rather quickly if you need to." He said before he shrugged. "However, you need to put more force into your attacks. Though, that might be because you're fighting an actual human and you don't wish to outright kill me."

Jesse decided not to respond as she kept her eyes on Culain, sword raised and ready for more action. She put plenty of force into her attacks, thank you very much!

"Your form is also a rather rough fighting style. You seem to have taught yourself to fight or you were taught by someone who has a rather rough fighting style themselves." Culain tilted his head slightly to the side, as if he was pondering something. "Might I suggest different styles for you to work at? Maybe some books to help with some fighting stances?"

"Wait…" Jesse looked at the man strangely and stared at him like he grew another head. "Are you seriously trying to give me tips while we're in a middle of a fight? Or are you trying to mock me in a really weird way?"

"I am merely suggesting ways to increase your fighting repertoire. It is always better to improve oneself, especially if one is constantly going up against tougher and tougher opponents," Culain said with a shrug. "But what would I know? While I _did_ take out an entire mansion of pathetic illagers, I must be _clueless_ when it comes to _actual_ fighting." He smirked. "Maybe you _actually_ have a shot to take me down, in that case."

"You are mocking me!" Jesse snapped at the man, feeling more determined to take Culain down more than ever. Feeling goaded, she held the sword in front of her as she charged at the kidnapper. Culain let the smirk drop from his face as he charged at Jesse as well and their swords clashed as they collided with the other.

As the two continued to fight, the three onlookers watched the battle with baited breath.

"Go Jesse! Come on, mop the floor with him!" Axel cheered on his friend, letting out a loud 'woo' as he did.

"Agh, Axel! You don't have to yell that loud." Lukas covered his ears as he sent a glare at Axel.

"Hey, I'm just making sure Jesse can hear me. This thing could be soundproof for all we know!" Axel said as he continued looking at the intense fight.

"… Axel, we can hear everything they're saying," Lukas said in a steady tone, trying to not to yell as loud as Axel did.

"… Oh." Realizing what Lukas trying to say, Axel rubbed the back of his head. "Guess this thing isn't soundproof."

Olivia, not really paying attention to the loud conversation, continued watching the duel as she tapped her chin in thought.

Lukas, noticing Olivia's silence despite Axel yelling in their ears, looked at her curiously. "Something on your mind, Olivia?"

"Yeah. Something feels… weird," Olivia mumbled as she continued to watch the fight, not even glancing at Lukas.

"What do you mean?" Lukas asked, unsure what she meant.

"It's just…" Olivia paused to find the right words. "It feels like… this guy has some sort of hidden agenda."

"Agenda? What do you mean?" Axel turned to Olivia, his attention now on her.

"I don't know, it's just… this guy wants to escape being captured by us, right?" Olivia glanced at Lukas and Axel. "He could have just used a potion to escape or use an amulet to change into an enderman and teleport away or something. But instead…"

"But instead he decided to fight Jesse one-on-one with swords and only swords," Lukas finished Olivia's sentence and looked back at the duel. "That… is weird."

"He even said we were no match for him before," Olivia looked back at the fight and leaned up against the invisible wall in front of her. "I'm just trying to figure out why he's doing this in the first place. Why play Jesse like this?" She narrowed her eyes at Culain. "What does this guy gain by doing all this?"

The three friends remained silent for a moment. The only sound that was heard was the sound of clashing swords from the duel.

"Wow," Axel muttered as he looked back at the fight. "Now I _really_ want Jesse to mop the floor with this guy."

As the duel continued on, Jesse began to feel herself get tired and sluggish as the minutes passed, but continued to push herself further. Perhaps it was because she had her fight with Eve before and then her duel with Culain shortly after that she was getting as tired as she was starting to feel.

Jesse cursed to herself. Why hadn't she considered that before taking Culain's offer? Why had she not considered her own limits?

Jesse continued fighting, despite those thoughts and the edges of tiredness starting to ebb at her reflexes.

"Hmm," Culain mumbled as he leapt away from Jesse's sword slash and raised his sword in front of him. "Perhaps it's time to end this. I do have others places I need to be."

"Good, I was just thinking the same thing," Jesse said as she raised her sword as well, almost mirroring Culain's fighting stance. The faster she ended this, the faster her friends would be free from the barrier.

The two duelers stared each other down, waiting for the other to move first. Then, almost at the same time, the two charged at each other, swords raised and ready to strike.

Just as the two were about to clash for the final time, Culain lowered his sword slightly. Then, the moment they were close enough, the kidnapper swung his sword up as hard as he could and knocked Jesse's sword into the air and out of her hands. He then collided into Jesse and quickly pushed her down to ground before Jesse could process that her sword was flying through the air.

Jesse felt her back slam to the ground, knocking the wind right out of her. She could hear her friends call her name, but she was too dazed at the moment to focus on their voices. Then she shook her head to gain her bearing and she finally was able to focus on the man standing over her and the sword pointed at her.

"Looks like it's game, set, match," Culain said, mimicking what Jesse had said to Eve when she struck him down. With a flip of his sword, Culain put it back into his inventory, his face as expressionless as ever.

Jesse, with a sigh, let her head drop back to the floor as she tried to come to terms with what happened.

Jesse had lost, plain and simple.

She couldn't believe she let herself be bested by that stupid kidnapper. What would she say to the villagers back at the villager? Heck, what _could_ she say? 'Oh, sorry, I let the guy that kidnapped half the villagers from the village get away because I lost a duel with him.'

Yeah, that'd go over _real_ well.

Noticing that the kidnapper was still standing in front of where she was laying, she got up onto her elbows and glared at the man. "What is it? Aren't you going to leave now that you won?"

Culain was silent for a moment before he answered. "If I was out to kill, you would be dead right now," He said so matter-of-factly that it made Jesse almost shiver in fear. "I suggest you improve yourself so nothing like this ever happens again." Culain looked over at Jesse's trapped friends. "I suggest you three improve as well. A team is only as strong as its weakest link."

"They aren't weak!" Jesse snapped at him, getting herself up off the ground and stood in front of the kidnapper, looking ready for another fight.

"I suppose… but you are stronger than them, aren't you?" Culain asked, beginning to walk towards where Jesse's friends were still trapped. "You have to admit, they couldn't have lasted as long as you did if I asked them to duel me on one-on-one instead." He stopped in front of the barrier and looked at them curiously. "I suppose with teamwork, all four of you could have lasted at least a little while against me. But I wonder…" He said as he stared at the three trapped friends with piercing eyes. "How long will it take before they feel like a burden to their friend? To feel like their so called 'fearless leader' is so far ahead of them when it comes to skill. What should they do if that's the case, I wonder?"

Before Jesse or her friends could respond, Culain turned away from the barrier and walked away with a shrug. "Well, looks like it's about time to say my good-byes. As interesting as our little duel was, I am a very busy man. I have other things I need to do that require my attention." He stared at Jesse for a moment. "I have won our little duel, so I will leave without any further resistances, correct?"

Jesse glared at the man for a moment before crossing her arms. " _Fine_. Get out of here! But if I ever see you again, me and my friends will take you down. Got it?"

"Understood," Culain responded impassively. He paused for a moment before he took out a few things from his inventory and tossed them to Jesse. "Here."

Jesse, surprised by the sudden items flying towards here, reached out to catch them and tried not to drop them in the process. Once she was holding onto the items, her eyes widen in recognition. "Hey, these are the things Eve dropped!"

"Yes, they are. You did defeat that maniac, so I suppose you have a right to them," Culain said with a shrug. He began to back away from Jesse and towards the door. "I suggest you hold onto those items, just in case. You never know when you'll need them." Turning around, Culain opened the door before glancing back towards Jesse and her friends. "We won't meet again."

With those final words, Culain walked out of the room and disappeared.

Lukas and Axel, who had been pushing on the invisible barrier in hopes that it would disappear so they could attempt to punch the kidnapper's lights out, suddenly found that the thing they were pushing on had disappeared and both of them collapsed to the ground with a thud.

"Ugh, at least we're finally out of that barrier," Lukas groaned as picked himself off the ground and held a hand up to his black eye as he could feel the pain flaring up again.

"Stupid jerk with his stupid mask and his stupid potions," Axel grumbled as he got up from the ground and crossed his arms in a huff. "Who does that guy think we are? We're just as tough as Jesse!"

Olivia, on the other hand, remained silent as she rubbed her arm nervously at Axel's words.

Jesse remained silent as well as she stared at items the kidnapper had given her.

They seemed like nothing more than a reminder of her loss with Culain and his words that were floating through her head.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

After a quick chat with her friends, the Order of the Stone had decided to spend the night at the creepy mansion.

While it wasn't the most inviting place to stay at, it was certainly better than going out into the dark roofed forest with all the monsters roaming about.

Jesse had decided to look around the mansion to see if there was anything else of interest in one of the rooms. Unfortunately, they seemed devoid of anything useful. There was a pantry that she stumbled across and she took some food from the chests to give to her friends later, but other than that there was nothing that got her attention.

Axel had volunteered to go collect Malia from her make-shift building and see if she wanted to sleep in the mansion instead. Lukas and Olivia, on the other hand, had decided to go looking for a room for them to sleep in until morning.

Jesse glanced around the empty hallway she was walking down and was very aware of how quiet and desolate it was. Earlier, it was filled with disguised illagers just chatting away. Now, however, it was nothing but a ghost town.

Culain wasn't kidding when he said he took out all of the illagers by himself.

Frowning at the thought of him, Jesse had once again taken out the items that Eve had dropped and stared at them once more. The blue amulet was pretty much identical to the ones that her friends had gotten, right down to the ever-changing black symbol of a person on it.

The doll, however, was a different story.

It looked like it was made of birch wood but it felt nothing like wood to Jesse. It was smooth like an enderpearl and the eyes seemed to have been made from emeralds. It was strange, but the eyes seemed to be watching her every movement. Jesse noticed that they weren't filled with malice. It instead felt like… curiosity? Wonder? Hope? Jesse wasn't entirely sure.

Shaking her head and getting away from those thoughts, Jesse stuffed the items into her inventory and continued walking down the depressing hallway.

"There you are, Jesse!"

Hearing a familiar voice calling after her, Jesse turned around and saw Lukas running up to her. "Lukas? I thought you were looking for a bedroom for us to crash in with Olivia?"

"Yeah, we found it. Though, Olivia suggested we'd try to find you and Axel and show you the way later," Lukas said before he rubbed the back of his head. "Kinda glad I ran into you instead of Axel."

Jesse raised an eyebrow at Lukas' words before she remembered the reason why he didn't want to run into their large friend. "Ah, you and Axel were fighting with each other earlier. Still haven't kissed and made-up, yet?"

"Not even close," Lukas grumbled under his breath and glared at the passing wall they were walking by. "As far as I'm concerned, the less I see of him outside our group, the better." Lukas looked down at the floor with a forlorn expression before he looked back at Jesse. "Though, I just wanted to run into you to see how you're doing. How are you holding up after… you know?"

Jesse's eyes widened when she realized what he was referring to and she let out a breath before looking to the side. "I'm… still thinking about it. I haven't lost that badly since the Old Builders killed me during the Games." Her brow then furrowed and she held her fists in front of her. "Then I keep thinking about what Culain said to you guys and… agh! It just makes me so angry thinking about it! You guys are plenty tough! There's no way my friends are burdens!"

Lukas remained silent during Jesse's rant and glanced away from her.

"Just… ugh, I really need to stop thinking about that guy. If I keep thinking about him, it'll just make my blood boil. The next time I see his dumb masked face, I'll mop the floor with him," Jesse complained, not noticing Lukas' silence. She took a deep breath to calm herself down before looking over at him. "For now, we should focus on getting some sleep and then heading back to the village."

"U-uh, yeah, we should," Lukas stuttered, snapping him away from his thoughts and looked back at Jesse.

Jesse raised an eyebrow at Lukas' reaction but decided not to ask. "I just hope they aren't too upset about all the villagers that lost their lives and me just… losing against the kidnapper." She frowned at the thought and looked back at the wall they were passing.

Lukas stared at Jesse for a moment before he looked at her curiously. "Wait a minute… you're not feeling guilty about what happened, are you?"

"U-uh…" Now it was Jesse's turn to stutter. "Um… maybe a teeny, winey, tiny bit?" She wasn't sure why she phrased it like a question, but she was more surprised that Lukas read her like a book.

"Jesse, there's no way we could have saved them. Not to mention there was no way of knowing what that Culain guy was capable of," Lukas said, trying to reason with her. "That's not something to feel guilty over."

Jesse sighed as she looked forward at the hallway they were walking down. "I know… it's just that I made it sound like we were gonna rescue all of them when we talking to Carter and then we didn't and just… agh!" She put her face in her hands and groaned. "Now I feel so dumb for saying all that stuff!"

Lukas was about to refute what Jesse had said, before he noticed something odd about the wall they were passing and he stopped to stare at it.

Noticing that Lukas had stopped walking with her in the corner of her eye, she turned around and looked at him curiously. "Uh… isn't this the part where you tell me I'm being silly or something?"

"Hm? Oh, right..." Lukas said, focusing his attention back on Jesse. He rubbed the back of his head as he continued to stare at the wall. "Sorry, there's just something about this wall that's bugging me."

"Bugging you how?" Jesse went over and looked over at the wall Lukas was looking at and then looked back at him. "It looks like an ordinary wall to me."

"Yeah…" Lukas glances at along the wall of the hallway and then stared at the wall in front of him again. "But this one wall is made from spruce wood, NOT dark oak wood. Why would this one wall be made of entirely different blocks than the rest of the mansion?"

Jesse's eyes widened as she looked along the walls of the hall and realized that he was right. The walls that they had walked passed were a slightly darker shade of brown than the one that Lukas had pointed out. But why would...

Wait a minute!

"What if there's something behind this wall? Maybe like a secret room or secret passage?" Jesse asked aloud as she went up to the wall and put her hand on it in thought.

"Wait..." Lukas looked at Jesse with a raised eyebrow. "How'd you jump to that conclusion?"

"Well, don't suspicious looking walls always lead to some kind of treasure or something like that? At least, that's what happened in a few stories I've read." Jesse looked back at Lukas and the back at the wall with a serious look on her face. "Help me break this down, okay?"

"Huh... guess that makes sense in a weird sort of way. Alright, I'll help." Lukas went up to the wall and stood next to Jesse. Together, they punched at the wall until there was a big enough hole for them to walk into, and as they did…

"Hey! A secret door!" Jesse looked at the set of double doors with a grin and then patted her friend on the back. "Nice find, Lukas!"

"Thanks, Jesse," Lukas said with a smile before he looked at the door suspiciously. "Though, that doesn't mean that there's not something bad in there."

"Only one way to find out!" Jesse said confidently and pulled out her diamond sword that she had recovered from her duel earlier and carefully opened the door and peeked inside.

Inside the room was a cobblestone wall through the middle of the room with cobblestone fences acting like bars along the wall. In the center of the wall was a set of iron doors that had a lever next to it. Jesse peeked through the bars on the wall and…

"Ah! They're back! Don't kill me please!"

"Nooo! I don't want to die like the others!" A whimper and a sob.

"Meh, just do it already. I don't even care anymore…"

Through the bars were three villagers, two of which were cowering in fear and the third one looked completely defeated and resigned.

"Wait a minute, there are villagers in here!" Lukas went up to the bars and looked through them. "Or… wait, are they illagers in disguise?"

"Ahhhh… wait, are those humans?" One of the villagers that were cowering in fear looked over at the humans before grinning and sighed in relief. "We're saved!"

"B-but what if they're those mean illagers disguised as humans?" The other scared villager said before he looked at the humans fearfully. "Maybe they thought up a new way to torture us?"

"If they are, I say just kill me already," The resigned villager went up to the bars and glared at Jesse and Lukas.

"Wait, no, we're friendly! We're the Order of the Stone!" Jesse said as she went over to the lever and pulled it down, opening the double set of doors. "We came to rescue you!"

"As long as you're not disguised illagers, that is." Lukas crossed his arms and glared at the three villagers.

"Wait, Order of the Stone?" The villager that looked hopeful went up to them and smiled nervously. "I saw you guys enter our villager from my window… before I was knocked out, that is." The villager held his arms out in front of him. "Search me all you want! I don't even have bread!"

"Wait, you recognize us?" Jesse asked as Lukas went over to the villager to pat him down for an amulet. "Oh! You must be that one villager that kidnapper took the night before."

"Why, yes!" The librarian villager looked happily at the humans, not even resisting Lukas' pat down. "I told the other two that the heroes would probably come and save us, but they didn't believe me."

"S-so we aren't going to die?" The cowering villager looked over at the humans, looking slightly hopeful.

"Great… I get to live with the memory of my friends dying in front of me," The defeated villager sighed before he leaned against the wall. "Fan-freaking-tastic."

"This guy is clean, Jesse. He doesn't have anything on him," Lukas said as he stopped searching the villager's inventory and stepped away. "Should I check the others?"

"U-um… okay. Just so you don't hurt me when you do," the cowering villager looked at Lukas, shaking like a leaf block.

"Does it look like I give a damn if he does or not?" The defeated villager raised his arms in front of him. "Just get it over with."

"I… don't think that'll be necessary, Lukas," Jesse said as she studied the faces of the villagers before looking back over to her friend. "If they were illagers, they wouldn't be willing to go through an inventory check."

Lukas looked over at the villagers one last time before turning to Jesse. "You have a point there."

"Hm… hey, can you go find and the others and tell them that we found survivors? They'll want to hear this!" Jesse looked over at the villagers and gave them a friendly smile.

"Right, I'm on it!" Lukas nodded at Jesse before he headed out the door to go find the rest of their friends.

Jesse continued to give them a friendly smile before she looked over at the librarian villager with a raised eyebrow. "So, any reason why you three were trapped in a secret room behind a wall?"

"U-um, the door wasn't covered up earlier," The cowering villager said. "But those mean illagers seemed to be preparing for something and didn't want anyone to find us, so they asked that guy who kidnapped us to seal us away, just in case."

"Yeah, I remember," The librarian villager nodded as he scratched his bald head in thought. "For some reason, he changed switched the wall's blocks when the illagers weren't around. It seemed a little random at the time."

"Meh, who cares what that guy did?" The defeated villager shrugged and glared at the wall. "He still kidnapped us and got us into this mess. My friends died because of him!"

"B-but didn't he say that someone would come help us eventually when he sealed us in?" The cowering villager looked over at his angry friend.

"Oooh, and THAT makes up for my friends dying! Well, la-de-dah!" The angry villager turned away with a snort and glared at the wall.

"Wait, the kidnapper said that?" Jesse asked, looking over at the villagers curiously.

"Yeah," The librarian villager nodded. "He said that someone will find us eventually. If no one came, then he'd take us back to the village himself." The librarian titled his head in confusion. "Why kidnap us then take us back to the village? Are all humans this strange?"

Jesse's brow furrowed as she tried to make sense of the kidnapper's actions. Then, with a look of determination, looked at the three villagers.

"I have no idea what that guy is about… but the next time I see him, I'm getting to the bottom of this. One way or another."

* * *

 **A/N: WOW, this was a long chapter. Ahahaha... haha... ha... fight scenes will be the death of me, isn't it? :,D**

 **ANYWAY, I finally got to introduce Culain properly! Eh, sorta. He's still kinda mysterious, but that's kinda his whole shtick right now. :P**

 **Oh well, according to him, we won't see him ever again. So I guess this means we'll neeeevvvveeeeerrrr learn what his motives are. Nnnnope! Never gonna happen! xD**

 **Oh, yeah, I'm not gonna be taking any more villagers names. I don't want anymore suggestions for names when I start the next chapter, so... yeah. I'll throw the three that were suggested to me into a randomizer and see who's name is the lucky winner! :D**

 **Hmm... the next chapter is also probably going to be long, but there's no way I'm going to be cutting it up. There's gonna be A LOT of things laid out into the open. There's also gonna be a lot of talking. Though, sometimes people just need a good long talk, ya know?**

 **Speaking of things being laid out into the open, anyone have any theories what Lukas, Olivia and Axel are keeping secret? I'd like to know what people think they are. :D**

 **I don't think I gave Olivia's secret many hints, but I know there are a few hints when it came to Lukas' secrets. Hmm...**

 **Ah, right. Before I forget, I didn't know if I wanted to keep any villagers alive for the end of the chapter so I asked my beta Ariza and she said to keep a few alive... but make it a surprise. ;D**

 **Can't get anymore surprising than a secret room, amirite?**

 **And... that's enough talking out of me... but the Order of the Stone in the next chapter... HOO BOY. xD**


	9. Episode 1: Chapter 8

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

The roofed forest biome… a place that held many dangers and terrible creatures that lurked in the depths of its woods. The worst came once night had fallen upon the shaded forest. From the zombies that slowly paced around looking for their next victim to the creeper that's ready to ruin your day and your builds, the biome was not a place for the weak of heart or the fearful.

Unfortunately for Malia, she was the latter.

Shivering in the corner next to a torch and her animal companions, Malia tried her best to wait patiently for the Order of the Stone to return with the villagers and was the victorious heroes she knew they were. What epic battles were being had in that very mansion, where any and all evil doers were no match for the greatness that was the Order of the Stone?! Oh, how Malia wished she could have seen them for herself!

Suddenly, her make-shift spruce wood plank shack creaked from the wind and Malia squeaked in fear before burying her head in her light blue poncho in an attempt to hide herself.

… Okay, maybe she didn't wish she could have seen the battle. She'd probably faint if the evil illagers even so much as glanced at her.

Slowly peeking her head out from her poncho, she looked around the small room and saw that her beloved llamas were as calm and spacey as ever. Her trusted horse was watching her with concern as he walked over to her and bowed his head to see if she was fine.

Malia smiled and patted the horse's nose. "I'm fine, Horace. Just…" She frowned and pulled her knees up to her chest. "… This place just has me so on edge. I'm just worried that some terrifying monster will come at me from the darkness." She paused for a moment before she smiled at her animal companion. "But I built this shack, right? So as long as I stay in here, there will be no monsters coming to-"

 _*Thump-thump-shuffle*_

Malia immediately tensed up as her eyes darted around in panic, looking for the source of that strange noise. Her llamas were still spacing out and staring at nothing, so they couldn't have made the noise. Her horse was just looking at her with his head titled, so definitely not him. Then where could the…

 _*Thump-thump-shuffle*_

Hearing the noise for a second time, Malia immediately stood up and stared at the door with her eyes wide open in fear.

 _*Thump-thump-shuffle*_

The noise grew ever louder and ever closer to Malia. The fearful trader could feel her heart hammer in her chest as she tried to back herself further into the corner, but to no avail. She was already as far as she could go.

 _*THUMP-THUMP-SHUFFLE*_

Oh gravel, oh gravel, OH GRAVEL, OH GRAVEL! Something was getting closer to the door! Was it a monster? Maybe it was an illager? Perhaps it was a psycho killer who was eight feet tall and wielded a diamond axe and she was the next victim?!

 _*rattle-rattle-rattle*_

Oh gravel, something was trying to open the door. Malia needed to think of something and fast! Didn't she have a sword somewhere in her inventory? Gravel, where did she put that thing?

 _*rattle-rattle-creeeaaaak*_

"Hey, Ma-"

"AAHHHHHH! TAKE THAT, YOU MONSTER!" Malia shut her eyes in fear and threw the first thing she grabbed from her inventory at the open door, somehow avoiding hitting her llamas with the object in the process.

Malia heard something clink on some glass and a familiar voice. "Dude, I was just coming in to say hi. Didn't think you would greet me by throwing something at my face."

Her eyes shot open as she saw Axel standing at the doorway, holding an empty bucket and rubbing his helmet as he stared at the trader with part of his unibrow raised. He was probably wondering what he did to deserve a bucket to the head.

"Oh my gosh! It's Axel the TNT Terror!" Malia squeaked out as she stared at the larger man and then at the bucket she had thrown at him in her panic. Embarrassed and ashamed, she covered her face with her hands and then groaned. "I am so sorry! I just heard a strange noise and I panicked and I thought it was a monster or something and I got scared and-"

"Woah, woah, little dude. It's no big deal," Axel said as he walked through the llamas and handed the panicking girl her bucket back. "I was just coming out to see if you wanted to stay in the mansion since it got cleared out and stuff. But it was so dark out there that I just ended up stumbling around until I found the place."

"Oh… right, probably should have put a torch or something outside of the door. My bad…" Malia rubbed the back of her head shyly before her eyes widened. "Wait, you said that the mansion was cleared?" Malia asked, her eyes practically sparkling with excitement. "Then that must mean that the Order of the Stone took out all those illager guys!"

"Uh… well…" Axel rubbed the back of his head and looked away. "I mean, we took out, like, five of them…"

"Huh?" Malia looked at Axel, the confusion obvious on her face. "But you just said that the mansion was cleared out? Was there only five illagers in that huge mansion?"

"No, there were probably a lot more. At least, it looked that way when we were walking in, but they were kinda disguised as villagers so they didn't look like illagers but we saw some villagers transformed into illagers so all the villagers were probably just illagers in disguise so…"

"Wait, what?" Malia was getting even more lost the longer Axel went on.

"… So there was this awesome fight that we totally won against the illagers but then that stupid jerky kidnapper showed up and beat Jesse in a duel and apparently he killed the rest of the illagers which was TOTALLY uncalled for because we totally could've handled it by ourselves!"

"Wait, WHAT?!" Malia almost yelled out. "Jesse was defeated by the kidnapper?" The panic rising in her voice. "Is she okay?!"

"Huh? Oh yeah, she's totally fine. Jesse's kinda bummed about losing to that Culain guy and all the villagers apparently dying before we even got here, so…"

"THE VILLAGERS ARE WHAT?" Malia screamed, her heart nearly leaping out of chest.

"… Didn't I say that before?" Axel asked, scratching the back of his head in thought.

Malia stared at Axel for a long time before she suddenly felt light-headed and leaned on the wall to keep herself from falling over. "I… I think I need to lie down."

"Great! You can lie down in the mansion!" Axel said, oblivious to Malia's distress.

"Uh… right…" Malia mumbled, trying to come to terms that most of the villagers that she had known were suddenly gone. She wasn't close to them by any means, but she did grow to like them even if some of them didn't like her. She had even given some of them names, for crying out loud!

As she moved to lead her llamas out of the shack, Axel looked confused at what she was doing. "Uh, wait, are we taking the llamas too?"

"Uh… yeah?" Malia looked back at Axel. "Of course we are. I'm not leaving them alone in a shack in the middle of the dark woods."

Axel stared at one of the llamas as it was staring back at him before he shrugged. "Alright, let's move all of them. I mean, how hard could it be?"

As they began to herd the llamas out of the shack, Axel looked at the strange trader questioningly. "So… do people really call me the TNT Terror?"

Malia blinked at the question, snapping her out of her thoughts. "Huh? Oh…" Malia chuckled sheepishly. "Well, sorta? I mean, I mostly call you that but…"

"Because it sounds TOTALLY AWESOME!" Axel grinned as he put his fist in the air as he struck a pose. "Axel the TNT Terror! The greatest King of Boom Town! He strikes terror in the hearts of monsters when he uses TNT to explode them to bits!"

Malia stared at Axel for a moment before bursting out into laughter. "Right?! See, I was considering some awesome titles to call you guys and I thought that TNT Terror would fit you. I also considered calling you 'Ruggish Rouge', but I thought that was too close to Magnus' old title."

"Well, I like it! I should totally introduce myself as that from now on."

The two continued to talk about names and titles as they started to move the llamas out of the shack.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

Lukas wasn't entirely sure what he was going to find once he found the others…

"Come on! Push harder! We're so close!"

"Agh, I'm trying! I'm pushing their butts as hard as I can!"

"Well, push their butts even harder! They can take it!"

"Huuuurrrgggghhhh!"

… But of all the things he was expecting to see, it certainly wasn't this.

The entire area that was between the main staircase and the main entrance to the mansion was completely covered in llamas (plus one horse). Four llamas had somehow gotten stuck in the entryway and they looked completely oblivious to their predicament. Malia was trying to pull on one of the llamas by a lead and, from what Lukas had heard, Axel was on the other side of the llamas trying to push them inside.

Olivia, who was standing to the side, shook her head as she facepalmed just from the sheer ridiculousness of the whole situation. She heard Lukas walk up next to her before turning around the face him. "Oh, hey Lukas. Did you find Jesse?"

"Uh, yeah…" Lukas stared at the completely weird scene for a moment longer before turning to Olivia. "I see you found Axel and Malia."

"Yeah…" Olivia sighed before facepalming again. "Apparently, Malia wanted to bring all her llamas into the mansion. They were doing pretty well until… well, this." Olivia took her hand off her face and shook her head again. "How they were able to get a pack of llamas out of a shack and into the mansion and only had the last four get stuck in the doorway, I'll never know."

Lukas just nodded as he stared at the strange scene again. Malia still continued to pull on the lead while she tried to encourage Axel to push even harder. Lukas looked over at the trapped mammals and recognized one of the llamas that was stuck as Blossom, the friendly llama that didn't spit in his face.

Blossom, finally noticing Lukas, let out a soft 'mwa' as she walked out of the doorway as if she was never stuck and went over to Lukas before she put her head in his hair and nuzzled it.

With one of the llamas no longer being stuck, the rest of the llamas quickly rushed into the hallway as Axel pushed on them as hard as he could before falling to the floor and landing on his face. Malia's arm was almost pulled out of her socket as the llamas rushed in, forcing her to let go of her lead and fell onto the floor and landed on her back.

"Ow…" Malia groaned before she sat up and looked over at Axel. "Well… turns out all we needed was Lukas and not brute force." She turned her head towards Lukas and frowned. "I'm beginning to think Blossom likes you more than me and I'm not sure how I feel about that."

"Yeah, I'm not sure how I feel about that either," Lukas said as he backed away from Blossom and her nuzzling. Blossom merely responded with a 'mwa' and followed him before sticking her head in his hair again.

Axel stood up and crossed his arms, mumbling under his breath. "We totally could've handled it without him. They just needed a little more push."

Olivia just rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips. "Axel, they're finally inside. I don't think it matters how they got in." She looked back to Lukas and raised an eyebrow. "Wow, she really likes your hair, doesn't she?"

"I'm just hoping she doesn't think its hay and tries to eat it," Lukas said, wincing at the thought and tried to push Blossom's head away from his hair. Successfully removing llama face from his hair, Lukas remembered why he had come looking for the others in the first place. "Oh, right, me and Jesse found some villagers alive behind a wall and-"

"Wait, there are villagers still alive?!" Malia quickly stood up and stared at Lukas with excitement and happiness. "Where are they?! How are they doing?! They're not hurt, are they?!"

"Oh, they're fine… physically at least," Lukas said before he looked back at the hallway he had walked down. "We found them down in that dir-"

"Then what are we waiting for?! I want to see them!" Malia's hands were raised in the air and her eyes sparkled in anticipation before she took off running down the hallway, leaving her llamas behind.

"Wait, Malia, this place is huge! You might get…" Lukas was about to say before Malia had turned the corner and disappeared from view. "… Uh, lost."

"Well, what am I standing around here for? I wanna see them for myself too!" Axel quickly ran down the hallway Malia had rushed towards.

"But…" Lukas's sentence ended prematurely when Axel turned the corner and disappeared as well. "Seriously, Axel? What did I just say about getting lost?" Lukas grumbled under his breath.

"I guess we should follow them." Olivia said before she turned to the llamas and looked very unsure how to deal with the several llamas that were scattered about. "Um… you guys just stay here, okay?"

The llamas didn't respond as they were too busy looking at empty space.

Olivia and Lukas quickly followed after their friends to make sure they didn't inevitably get lost in the huge mansion.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

"So the illagers kept you guys alive just for fun?" Jesse asked the villagers as she leaned against the hallway wall as she waited for her friends to arrive.

"If by 'fun' you mean 'thinking it's sooo hilarious to torture us before they kill our fellow villagers in front of us'." The grumpy villager grumbled aloud before turning away and glared out through the window and into the dark night. "Then yes; they did keep us alive for fun."

"U-um, don't mind him. He's been here longer than any of us," The cowardly villager said before he took his hands out of his sleeves and played with his hands nervously. "He's… been through a lot."

"I'm just glad we survived this terrible ordeal," The librarian villager said with a twitch of his nose. "You'll be escorting us back to our village, yes? We would not survive out in the forest without assistance."

"Yep!" Jesse nodded with a friendly smile. "You don't have to worry about a thing. We'll make sure you get back to your home safe and sound. You can count on the Order of the Stone!"

As long as they didn't run into that Culain guy again, but Jesse decided to not voice those thoughts. She didn't want to make the poor villagers worry about their trip in the morning.

"Heeey, they really are alive!"

Hearing a familiar voice, Jesse and the librarian villager turned to see Malia running up them before she stopped and leaned on the wall as she tried to catch her breath. The librarian's nose twitched as he frowned for a moment before he blinked in realization. "Ah, I remember you. You're that human girl who tried to trade me all of her paper at one point. You even resorted to begging."

Malia stared at the villager for a moment before her eyes lit up with realization and joy. "Oh my gosh! It's Brian!" She said before she chuckled and rubbed the side of her arm. "Um, heheh, you remember that, huh? In my defense, I had a massive surplus of sugar cane that I crafted into paper and I really needed to get rid of it and you're a librarian villager and I tried to give it all to Carter, but he was all 'I do not need all this material!' and I really-"

"Ugh, the humans have brought the annoying one!" The grumpy villager lightly slammed his head on the window repeatedly, silently wishing that such an action would knock him out.

"Um… that was a little uncalled for…" The cowardly villager looked at his friends before turning to Malia. "Um… sorry, miss trader."

"It's no problem… uh…" Malia put her hand up to her chin in thought as she looked over both of the villagers. "I don't think I gave you guys any names yet," She said before she smiled cheerfully at them. "I'll have to think of something, in that case!"

"Oh please, no," The grumpy villager groaned before he continued to slam his head into the window one final time before letting out a long, deep sigh.

"Hey, Jesse! Finally found you guys!"

Tearing her eyes off the conversation Malia and the villagers were having, Jesse looked down the hallway and saw Axel running toward her with Lukas and Olivia following behind. She greeted and waved at them as they approached her.

"Axel, you didn't have to run all over just to find them. I could have lead you here myself," Lukas said between panting breaths as he leaned on the wall for support, having to run at top speed just to catch up with Axel. Who knew that the large man could run so fast when he wanted to?

"Hey, I found them just fine. I didn't need help," Axel grumbled before he turned to the villagers and looked at them curiously. "So these guys aren't illagers in disguise, right?"

"Nope, they're totally legit," Jesse answered before she put her hands on her hips and looked over at her friends and the villagers. "Okay, since everyone is here, we need to get some rest before we head out tomorrow and take the villagers back to their home. The sooner we hit the hay, the earlier we can rise in the morning and the sooner we can all head back home. Any objections?" No one had responded, so she turned to Lukas and Olivia. "Well, lead the way, you two. It's bedtime!"

 ** _-MCSM-_**

After Lukas and Olivia had lead the group to a couple bedrooms that they had found on the second floor, the group decided to split up. The Order of the Stone would take a room for themselves while the villagers, the llamas, and Malia would sleep in the adjacent room. Olivia had set up a few redstone traps around the rooms and in the hallway to make sure there wasn't any unwanted company that came while they were in middle of dreamland.

Jesse, for one, was glad that she finally had the chance to sleep away her worries and cares, if only for a moment.

"Oh, sweet and fluffy bed, how you call out to me," Jesse yawned out as she landed face first into the inviting bed. Sure, it might have been slept in by illagers before, but Jesse could not have cared less.

"I hear you. I couldn't be more exhausted and I didn't even do much of anything in those fights," Olivia responded as she sat on the bed and looked over at her friend who still had her face buried in her pillow.

"Those illagers may have been totally evil and psychotic, but man, do they know how to make a bed," Axel said as laid on top of a large bed, just perfect for a man his size.

Lukas was about to lay on his bed and take out his journal from his inventory, but he stopped himself as he looked over at Axel and frowned. "You know what? I think I'm going to go over and stay in the other room with Malia and the villagers."

Removing her face from her pillow, Jesse looked over at her friend. "Uh, okay, that seems a little random. Can I ask why?"

"I'll just feel a lot more comfortable once I'm out of this room so I can focus on my journal," Lukas said before he walked to the door and opened it. He paused for a moment before he looked back at his friends. "Good night, guys." With those final words, he left the room and closed the door behind him.

"Okay, that was definitely weird. Was anyone else weirded out about by that?" Jesse asked with a look of concern evident on her face as she sat up on her bed. "Why would he want to leave the room to focus on his journal?"

"Eh, beats me," Axel said simply before he turned over onto his side and stared at the wall.

Olivia breathed a heavy sigh and looked over at Axel's back. "Okay, if you and Lukas are going to keep acting like this, it's probably time to tell Jesse what happened back at the inn."

"Wait, back at the inn?" Jesse looked confused for a moment before she snapped her fingers. "Oh, is this about that fight you guys are having? Lukas still seemed to be upset over it."

Axel mumbled under his breath before he turned away from the wall and laid on his back. "Fine, I guess I'll say something if Olivia says I should." He sighed before he looked over at Jesse. "Remember when you said not to look at his journal?"

"Yeah, wh-" Jesse stopped mid-sentence as her eyes widened in realization before she glared at her friend. "Axel, you didn't!"

"I only read a few pages that fell from it! I didn't read the actual book!" Axel sat up on his bed and held out his hands defensively when he was saw how miffed Jesse looked.

"It's the same thing! It still came from his journal!" Jesse almost yelled out before she took a deep breath as she tried to calm herself down. "Just… why Axel?"

"Mmpf, that's exactly what Olivia had said," Axel grumbled under his breath before he groaned and put his hands up to his face and covered his eyes. "Aaagh! I read it because it was practically calling out to me." He took his hands off his face and raised his arms into the air dramatically. "It was saying 'Read me! Read me and my delicious secrets! The world must know!'" He let his head fall back onto the pillow as he looked up at the ceiling. "I couldn't resist a call like that."

"Axel…" Jesse started to say before she scratched the back of her head as she thought about what she should say to her friend. "You should have just asked what he had written instead of reading it behind his back. If Lukas had said no, well, you just gotta respect that. That's what friends do: they respect each other." Jesse let out a sigh as she saw Axel glance over at her. "If what you read really had some secrets then… well, Lukas probably feels like you invaded his personal space. I'd be mad too if someone did that to me."

Axel remained silent as he looked thoughtful at what Jesse had said.

"Did you at least apologize?"

"Uh…" Axel mumbled before he looked away guiltily. "… No."

Another sigh from Jesse. "Do you at least feel bad about what you did?"

A pause. "… I guess."

"Then apologize when you get the chance. Just… don't wait forever, okay?"

Axel mulled it over in his head for a moment before he nodded. "Yeah… okay, I'll do that," He said before he grumbled, "Unless he acts like a big stuck-up jerk then…"

Jesse said nothing as she glared at her friend with eyes that pierced him like swords.

Axel practically shrunk under his friend's stare and chuckled nervously. "Then I'll, uh, do it anyway. Because that's what friends do!"

"There we go! That's the spirit!" Jesse smiled at her friend, happy things would work out between him and Lukas. "Now, enough talk! It's time for sleep!" She was about to let her head hit the pillow before she caught Olivia gazing at her. "Uh, what's up, Olivia?"

"You gotta teach me how to do that."

"Uh…" Jesse blinked in confusion. "With… what?"

"You just got Axel to agree he'd apologize to Lukas. I tried to tell him to do it before but he really seemed reluctant." Olivia looked back at Axel and saw that he had started to snore away the moment Jesse had said it was time to sleep. Shaking her head, she turned back to Jesse. "Can't believe you just got him to agree to it so easily… or maybe I can. You've always been better at defusing fights than me."

"Hey, I just said what felt right." Jesse shrugged. "Though, I can't really help them patch things up. It's up to Axel and Lukas themselves. I just… gave Axel a bit of a nudge."

"That's it?" Olivia asked, as if she was expecting more.

"Yeah, I guess that's it." Jesse shrugged again, and looked over at her friend. "Is there anything else you want to ask?"

"Uh, no… that's it," Olivia sighed before she tugged at the blankets of her bed before she smiled at her friend. "See you in the morning, Jesse." With those final words she laid down on the bed and prepared for sleep.

"Good night, Olivia." With a yawn, Jesse laid back down on her bed and buried her head in the soft pillow once again before she began to enter the land of dreams.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

"Okay, seriously, are you gonna be writing in that thing all night?" Malia yawned out, looking over at the blonde writer who seemed to be focused on whatever page he was on as his quill pen tapped lightly on the paper.

"Not all night," Lukas said, not even looking over at the trader. "I'm thinking more like half."

"Half the night? Just writing in that thing?" Malia asked, surprised he was even thinking of doing something like that in the first place. "Seriously, just what are you writing that's so important?"

Lukas didn't respond as he continued to stare at the page he was on and lifted the quill off the page and tapped his cheek with the top of the feather.

Malia just sighed loudly as her head hit the pillow, staring up at the ceiling as she could feel her tiredness beginning to envelop her. She looked over at the sleeping villagers in their beds and her llamas laying down on the floor as they snored away. How she wished she could join them…

As she looked over at Lukas one more time, she sat up and her eyes lit up eagerly. "Well, since you're so into writing so much, how about some blank books to write in? Don't actually have those on hand, but I do have the materials to craft it."

Lukas' quill pen stopped in mid-stroke as he looked over at Malia with a weary expression. "You're seriously trying to sell me something now? It's already late at night as it is."

"Says the guy who's planning to stay up half the night anyway," Malia said with a grin before she pulled out some paper from her inventory and waved it in the air. "Come on, I can offer you a good price!"

"Thanks, but I already have a blank journal I need to write in as it is," Lukas said before he mumbled under his breath. "Maybe I'll get around to it in a few days. Yeah, I could probably work that in."

"Aw, fine," Malia said with a sigh as she put her paper back in her inventory. "Well, you continue on with your late night writing. _I'm_ going to sleep before we head out tomorrow." She laid back down on her bed as she prepared for a good night sleep.

Lukas stopped writing in his journal before he looked over at the tired trader. He looked back at the page he was writing on as he mulled something in his head before turning back to her. "Hey, Malia?"

"Huh, whazzit?" Malia mumbled as she sat up and looked over at Lukas tiredly. "What is it now?"

"There's something I want to talk to you about…"

 ** _-MCSM-_**

The square sun had risen over the horizon, the chickens were clucking, and all the zombies and skeletons were burning from the new daylight. It was a brand new day and it was time to finally bring the villagers back to their home.

Jesse had woken up at dawn and had to prod everyone awake. While she was met with a little resistance, she had successfully gotten everyone out of bed and out of the creepy, deserted mansion. Sure, they may have still been a little tired, but the sooner they took the villagers back to the village, then the faster the Order of the Stone could return to their own home.

The fearless leader scanned over the forest with her eyes as she looked out for any monsters that would dare come close to their little caravan. Luckily, they were getting increasingly closer to the village but that didn't stop her from being vigilant.

"Aw, come on. Not a single mob wants to attack us? Any at all?" Jesse heard Axel complain loudly behind her before she heard a loud groan. "Why is it when I want us to be attacked by mobs, they decide not to try and kill us?"

"Axel, why would you even want to be attacked by mobs? We have defenseless villagers with us." Jesse asked as she turned around and saw her friend moping.

"Because I wanna try out this super cool amulet!" Axel grinned as he pointed at the blue square he still had around his neck. "You said that Eve said you have to kill someone to take their form, right? So all I need is to punch out a bunch of mobs and then I can change into them."

"… Okay, while that is a good reason to wanting to be attacked by mobs, maybe we should wait until later when we don't have villagers with us." Jesse grinned as she pulled her amulet out of own inventory and looked at it. "I do like the thought of becoming any kind of mob. Just imagine what we could do! We could fight mobs _as_ mobs!"

"You read my mind, dude!" Axel would have high-fived his friend if she wasn't too far away on her llama.

Olivia, who was behind Axel, just sighed and shook her head as she placed a hand on her forehead in disbelief. "I still don't understand why you two think it's the coolest thing since… well, us. I think it's more creepy than it is cool."

Lukas didn't respond as he was beginning to nod off and his head landed on the back of his llama's neck as if he was trying to use it like a makeshift pillow.

"Village ho!" Malia called out as she led the caravan out of the forest and saw that the village was in sight.

"Ugh, finally!" The grumpy villager lifted his head from his hand and looked over at his home village. "I was beginning to think we'd never get there!"

"W-we're home…" The cowardly villager sighed in relief, happy to be back home after so long.

The caravan stopped at the entrance of the village and, before everyone could get off their llamas, they found themselves almost completely surrounded by villagers that began muttering to each other.

"Did the Order of the Stone do it? Did they stop the kidnapper?"

"Well, nobody was taken last night… so they must have!"

"There's only three villagers on those animals they're riding. I guess most our kind that were kidnapped were killed off."

"Such a shame… I hope that accursed kidnapper got what was coming to him."

Jesse winced at the last statement that one of the villagers had said. She wondered how the villagers would react once she told them… though she had a feeling that they wouldn't be too happy.

Carter had cleared his throat loudly and the entire group of villagers silenced themselves as they parted the crowd. The mayor of the village stepped up to the caravan with a child villager following close behind before he looked over at the surviving villagers and nodded. "I see the Order of the Stone was successful on their quest."

"Er, we were mostly successful," Jesse said as she got of her llama and walked up to Carter. The rest of the Order, Malia, and the villagers had gotten off their own llamas and went up to Carter as well.

The three surviving villagers had nodded their heads to their mayor in respect and Carter had nodded back. The grumpy villager then shrugged before he went over to the other villagers and nodded at them. One of the villagers went up to the grumpy villager and said a few words to him before the grumpy villager turned away in shame. Then the villager that had walked up to him opened his arms up and gave the grumpy villager a big hug. The grumpy villager said nothing as he buried his face into his friend's shoulder.

The cowardly villager went over to the crowd and looked around nervously. Almost immediately, a child villager had ran out from the crowd and almost tackled the bigger villager in a hug. The cowardly villager sighed in relief as he knelt down and hugged the child villager back as tears began to develop in the corner of his eyes.

Brian glanced at his fellow survivors before he focused his sights back on Carter. "If it is not too much trouble, I would like to talk to you about something after you are done talking to the humans."

Carter 'hmm'ed in thought before he nodded. "Very well. We will discuss later."

Brian nodded again before he stepped away and gave the mayor and the Order some space.

Carter turned towards the Order of the Stone and looked at them before setting his sights on Jesse. "Have you stopped the illagers and that kidnapper?"

"Uh… sorta," Jesse said before she cleared her throat. "We did take out a few of the illagers, but… the one who really took care of most of them was the kidnapper himself."

Carter raised his eyebrow as if he was surprised. "Pardon?"

Jesse and the rest of the Order quickly gave Carter the run-down of what happened in the mansion. From the disguised villagers, to the fight with Eve and the loss against Culain, the Order of the Stone told the mayor of the village all the information they knew.

Carter remained silent as he slowly digested the story he was told. The crowd of villagers quietly whispered to each other, discussing what they had heard amongst themselves.

"So…" Carter put a hand up to his chin and his brow furrowed. "You have failed to bring the kidnapper to justice?"

Jesse's shoulders slumped. "Yeah, I'm really sorry. He was pretty strong and after the fight with Eve, I was just-"

Carter held up his hand and Jesse stopped talking. "It's fine, human. Me and my fellow villagers do not blame you for failing to bring the kidnapper down."

Jesse's eyes widened looked at the mayor in surprise. "Wait, seriously?"

"While we are disappointed that the kidnapper will not be brought to justice, you did defeat the leader of the ones that wish to harm us. That is more than any human would have done for us." Carter bowed his head. "So with that, I give the Order of the Stone my thanks."

Jesse paused as she took in what Carter had said. Then, she grinned thankfully. "There's no need for thanks, Carter! We're the Order of the Stone; it's what we do!"

"Wish you humans wouldn't call me that," Carter grumbled, still not pleased with the name Malia had given him.

"Though, Jesse was the only one who killed the leader. She didn't need our help," Olivia muttered under her breath.

"Hey, we took out those axe-wielding illagers, no problem. Those guys were probably just as tough as their leader," Axel said with a grin.

Olivia sighed. "You and Lukas did. I was thrown on top of a chandelier."

"Oh… right. Almost forgot I did that."

Before Jesse could turn around and give her friend a quick pep-talk, Carter cleared his throat as he tried to bring attention back to him. "All you humans had a hand in taking down of the ones that wish us harm, so I thank all of you. Not only had that, but all you humans have done many small good deeds around our small village that truly helped us." Carter turned towards Olivia. "You have constructed us an automatic farm that will serve us well for a long time. Your contribution to our village was truly the best we could have hoped for."

Olivia looked completely stunned yet grateful from the unexpected praise from the mayor himself. "I… thank you."

Carter just nodded before turning back to Jesse. "Will you humans be on your way or will you spend the night with us again? You are welcome to stay as long as you need."

Jesse considered Carter's offer before she turned to her friends. "What do you guys want to do?"

"I say we start heading out," Lukas said as he glanced toward the sun. "If we leave now, we would probably be back home before sundown."

Jesse nodded before she looked at Axel and Olivia. "And you guys don't have any objections?" Both her friends shook their heads before Jesse nodded and turned back to Carter. "Alright, guess we're leaving as soon as we can."

Carter nodded. "If that is your decision."

As he said those words, the crowd of villagers began to disperse and went about their normal duties or to go continue to discuss things amongst themselves. Brian went up to the mayor and nodded at him. Carter then shooed away the child villager that was following him and the little villager just nodded before he walked away. Before they walked away to discuss things in private, Brian looked over at Jesse. "Will you please come with us? I would like the leader of the Order of the Stone to weigh in with what I have to say."

Jesse looked at Brian in surprise. What did the librarian villager have to say that required her presence? "Um… sure." She turned back to her friends. "I'll meet up with you guys in a little bit." With that, she followed Carter and Brian.

With nothing else to do as they waited on their leader, the Order of the Stone prepared themselves for their journey home.

"I'm gonna miss this place," Malia sighed wistfully as she sat atop her horse. "I mean, I can visit whenever I want, but I should get more things to trade with before I even think of coming back." Malia then began to grumble, "They get really snippy with me if I try to give them things I gave them last time. They're gonna need more stuff at some point, so why not buy it now when I have it in a whole bunch of it?"

Lukas made a non-committal 'hmm' as he prepared to get atop Blossom, only pausing for a moment when he heard Olivia and Axel whispering to each other.

"Now's the perfect time! Do it now!" Lukas heard Olivia whisper.

"What? Now? As in right now?" Axel grumbled. "Can't I do it later?"

"Are you kidding? With our luck, we'll get swept up in something again and you'll never get the chance." Olivia said urgingly.

Axel let out another sigh and, to Lukas' surprise, walked up next to him.

"So…" Axel began, before he cleared his throat and focused on the blonde in front of him. "Uh… okay, I totally forgot what I was gonna say. Gimmie a second." Axel's face scrunched up in concentration.

Olivia sighed and held her face in her hands, already having a bad feeling where the conversation would lead to.

Lukas rolled his eyes and put his hands on his sides. "What do you want, Axel?"

"Eh…" Axel frowned for a moment before taking a deep breath. "I guess I wanted to say… sorry about the whole, you know, reading your stuff without your permission thing. That was… wrong of me and stuff."

Lukas' eyes widened as he looked at his large friend in disbelief. "Wait, you're actually apologizing to me?"

"Uh, yeah!" Axel humphed. "What? You've acted as if I've never apologized to you before." Axel paused for a moment. "At least, I think I did once before. Maybe."

"Uh, no… it's just…" Lukas rubbed the back of his head anxiously. "I was just beginning to think you'd never apologize to me for that."

"Well, never say never 'cause I'm doing it now," Axel said with a grin. "So, are we cool or are we cool?"

Lukas remained silent as he considered Axel's apology. "I'm… not sure I should forgive you just yet… you did read something that was really personal to me."

Axel's shoulders slumped.

"… But I will accept your apology." Lukas smiled as he held out his hand for a handshake. "I'm just glad we can finally begin to move past this. So consider us cool for right now."

Axel looked at Lukas' hand in surprise before he reached out to shake it with a smile. "Yeah, we're definitely cool!"

"Thank goodness. Now I won't have to hear anymore bickering from you two," Olivia said, happy that her friends had finally let bygones be bygones.

As soon as the two men had finished their hand shake, Lukas walked over to Olivia. "As long as we're trading apologies, I should probably say sorry to you, Olivia."

"Huh?" Olivia looked at Lukas in surprise. What did he have to apologize for?

Lukas took a deep breath as he looked serious. "Back at the inn when me and Axel were fighting, I… almost tried to interrogate Axel about the secret you guys are keeping. I know I was angry at Axel for trying to see what I was keeping secret, but that didn't give me the right to try to do to him what he did to me. So… I'm sorry. I didn't have the right to do that."

Olivia continued to look at Lukas in surprise. With the illagers and everything else that happened, she had almost forgotten about that. "It's alright, Lukas. You didn't have to apologize, but I'm happy that you did."

Lukas nodded. "I wasn't planning on saying anything once I overheard you guys, but I guess that fight got the better of me. It didn't sound like you were hiding anything bad."

Olivia just sighed dejectedly. "It's not bad, it's just… there's a lot going on with me right now." Olivia paused. "Or at least, could. I still haven't decided what to do yet."

"I still say you should go for it!" Axel chimed in. "I mean, you'd be-" Before Axel could say anything else, he clapped his hands over his mouth. "Oh, right, keeping it a secret. Still don't understand why though..."

Olivia sighed in response. "Axel, I have my reasons, okay?"

"But think of how cool it'll be! Jesse will think it's cool too!"

Olivia just crossed her arms and looked away. "I guess that's what I'm nervous about…"

Lukas looked back and forth between the two with the confusion evident on his face. "Okay, I am definitely missing some context here, but…" He turned to Olivia. "Whatever you decide on… whatever is going on, we'll be there for you."

Olivia just smiled sadly. "I know. Thanks Lukas."

Lukas just nodded as he glanced over to where Jesse was. The villagers seemed to be in a heated discussion while Jesse seemed to be trying to calm them both down. It seemed like it was going to be a while before they finished talking about… whatever it was.

He looked between Axel and Olivia as if he was seriously considering something important. "Hey, by the way…"

"Uh, what?" Axel asked as Olivia looked at Lukas curiously.

"There's something I want to talk to you guys about…"

 ** _-MCSM-_**

"So what is so urgent that you wished to speak to us in private?" Carter asked as him, Brian, and Jesse were far enough away from everyone that they could talk to each other without being interrupted.

Brian took his hands out of his sleeves and rubbed his chin as if he was thinking deeply what he was going to say. Then, with a deep breath, he finally spoke, "I think… we need to learn how to defend ourselves."

Carter looked at his fellow villager in shock. "What?"

"We were taken so easily and a good majority of us were killed off. Before those vile ones decided when to kill my fellows off, they thought it would be fun to torture us and laugh at our plight." Brian then sighed sadly. "Even if those accursed illagers are gone, there's still the matter of dark-hearted humans that could pillage our village or kill us for sport or those zombies that wish to taint us. We need to find a way to keep what happened from happening again." The librarian villager turned to Jesse. "Do you not agree with what I am saying?"

Jesse, who was listening intently to what Brian had to say, snapped out of her thoughts. "Well…"

"No! You cannot be serious!" Carter snapped angrily and crossed his arms. "We are a peaceful mob! We cannot change who we are! The last villagers who dared thought that way turned into those accursed illagers!"

"Well…" Jesse tried to say something, but was cut off by Brian.

"The human leader said that they turned evil because their ancestors were kicked out of the village by our ancestors! Wanting to defend ourselves for the better did not turn them evil to begin with!"

"But from the story the humans told, their lust for power drove them mad! Who is to say we would not lose ourselves once we try to attempt get stronger? There is a reason why we villagers must stay as we are."

"I don't think I said…" Jesse tried again to input into the conversation, but was inevitably interrupted.

"But if we are to stay as we are, we will end up on the brink of extinction! What if, one day, we are attacked by a zombie? We will be forced to become a zombie and will slaughter the unaffected. We are not immune like humans! Do you think we can just sit back and twiddle our thumbs?"

"But if we try stay away from such creatures, then there's no NEED to become afflicted. If our kind dares to try and slay zombies, then we will inevitably turn into one. We will be much safer staying away and locked in our homes."

"Zombies are able to break through doors if there are plenty of them! Besides, we can't just stay locked up in our homes if human griefers decides to pay our humble village a visit."

"Hang, why don't we all just…" Jesse tried to say something – _anything_ – to try and calm down the squabbling villagers, but they continued to argue as if she wasn't there.

The longer the two villagers argued, the more of Jesse's patience was tested. She tried to weigh both of their reasons in her head, but the continuous debate from the villagers wasn't helping anyone.

"Will. You. Both. SHUT UP?!" Jesse yelled at the villagers, causing the two to turn to her in surprise and almost cowered from her commanding tone. "You both have good points, I get that!" She turned to Brian. " _You_ want to make sure that what happened with the illagers never happens again and you want to make sure all the villagers stay safe." She then turned to Carter. " _You_ are afraid of becoming something else other than the neutral mob you are and you're afraid that getting stronger might twist everyone's psyche and they'll turn into the next illagers or something." She looked between the two. "Am I right?"

Both Carter and Brian glanced at the other before turning back to Jesse with a nod.

Jesse nodded back, satisfied that she had got their undivided attention. "Good. Now… have either of you considered that maybe… just maybe… you could find some sort of compromise?"

"Compromise?" Carter asked curiously. "What sort of compromise?"

"Uh…" Jesse faltered a bit, unsure how they would be able to compromise.

Come on… come on… think, Jesse! There had to be something they could come to an agreement with… maybe she should ask her friends for advice…

Wait a minute!

"I've got it!" Jesse expressed excitedly. "You can ask people for help!"

"… Come again?" Brian asked, unsure what Jesse was trying to get at.

"Okay, hear me out! What if you asked other people to help defend you? Maybe hire someone using emeralds or something to help defend your village every once in a while? Maybe they could make iron golems for extra protection to keep the mobs away! Heck, if you're feeling adventurous, maybe have someone teach you some moves with the sword and bow. That way, you don't have to rely on humans all the time." Jesse saw Carter's unsure look. "… Or don't. It's really up to you guys."

Brian frowned, looking as unsure as Carter. "To rely on humans to defend us? I don't know…"

"Hey, if I remember correctly, you guys asked for the Order of the Stone to come and help you," Jesse said with a sly grin.

Carter and Brian remained silent, their faces in deep concentration as they thought about Jesse's proposal.

"You know, the illager leader said something to me while I was fighting him," Jesse said, deciding to add one last thought in the hope that they would be swayed by her idea. "He said that villagers would NEVER change. That you guys would be blinded by tradition and you'd let people walk all over you… but I think he's wrong." She looked over at Carter. "Change may be scary, but sometimes you NEED to change to save the people you care about. Trust me on that." Jesse then looked at Brian. "But you can't forget who you are in the process. You guys are villagers, that's not going to change anytime soon." She glanced at the two villagers with a reassuring smile.

The two villagers remained silent for a moment longer before Carter cleared his throat. "I… suppose we can ask friendly humans for assistance. If it worked this well with the Order of the Stone, then who's to say it can't work with others humans?"

Brian just nodded. "As long as the humans are as friendly and protective as the Order, then I don't see why not." He turned to Jesse. "I don't suppose it would be too much to ask if you and your friends to stay in the village to help defend us?"

Jesse's smile faltered. "Sorry, but me and my friends have to return home. There's probably other people that need our help." Her friendly smile came back full force. "But! We can spread the word that villagers would want to pay people to help defend their village. And maybe the Order can stop by the village every once in a while to see how things are going."

Carter remained silent and smiled so softly that it was almost unnoticeable. "I see. Thank you for your help, hu- uh, Jesse."

Jesse blinked in surprise before she grinned slyly. "Why _Carter_ , are you warming up to me?"

The slight smile dropped from the mayor's face. "Don't try to act cute, human." Carter turned away and began to walk off before he turned back to Jesse. "We look forward to your next visit to our village. Safe travels." With those final words, Carter stormed away.

Brian watched the mayor walk away before turning to Jesse. "Thank you for your contribution to our discussion. Thanks to you, we will finally be on our way to being able to protect ourselves… even if it is with the help of other humans."

"Hey, it was my pleasure! Anything I can do to make sure everything turns out okay," Jesse said, pleasantly pleased that everything seemed to have worked out between the two villagers. She honestly wasn't sure they would go for her idea, but she was happy that they did.

Sure, Jesse kind of came up with it on the spot, but she'll take it!

Brian bowed his head. "I also wish you safety on your travels. I look forward to you and your team to visit again." With that, Brian turned and walked away to do… whatever villagers did.

"Bye! I wish you guys luck!" Jesse waved after the librarian villager. With a contented sigh, she looked around the village, happy to see the villagers going about their daily lives. Things seemed to have gone back to normal for the village and hopefully won't have any more kidnappings or villager killings anymore.

… Just as long as that stupid Culain guy doesn't decide to show his dumb masked face again and try to kidnap villagers again.

Shaking away those thoughts, Jesse looked over at her friends that were waiting for her. Looking closely, she noticed they were talking eagerly to each other. She saw Malia slide into the middle of the discussion and began gesturing wildly, causing Lukas to shake his head and facepalm.

Jesse wondered what they were talking about. Maybe she'd go over there and check it out…

"Um… 'scuse me?"

Jesse felt a tug on her hand and she looked down and saw a small child villager pulling on her arm as if he was trying to get her attention. The child was looking down at the ground and glanced up at her for a moment before looking back down at the ground, almost as if he was incredibly nervous.

"Aw, hi there little guy!" Jesse said as cheerfully as she could and knelt down so that she was looking at the child villager at eye level. With him so nervous, Jesse tried to make herself as unintimidating as she possibly could. "What's your name?"

"U-um…" The child villager shifted uncomfortably. "I don't have a name… I'm a villager and dad always said that names were… um, what word did he always say? Unness... um… nesseca… uh…"

"Unnecessary?" Jesse supplied gently.

"Um… yeah…" The child villager looked down at the ground nervously again. "Um… I just wanted to say… you and the other humans are… really cool… and, uh, thanks for helping out our little village. The other big villagers said that most humans are kinda mean but, uh, you guys seem pretty nice."

"Well, thank you!" Jesse said, happy to know what the little child villager thought of them.

"Um… you're welcome…" The child villager began shifting his feet back and forth and glanced up shyly at Jesse. It looked to Jesse that the kid wanted to talk some more, but he still looked extremely nervous.

Jesse decided to try and make some small talk to try and calm down the child's nerves. "So… how old are you little guy?"

The child villager blinked at the question before his face scrunched up as if he was trying to count how old he was in his head. "Um… two…"

"You're two years old?" Jesse asked, surprised by his age. The child looked no more than seven or eight years old to her.

"Um… no. Two weeks…"

"T-Two weeks?!" Jesse almost fell over in shock from the stunning revelation. Just how fast did villager children age?!

The child villager looked confused at Jesse's outburst. "U-um… is something wrong?"

"N-no, I'm just… surprised is all." Jesse rubbed the back of her nervously. "People… uh, humans tend to age a lot slower than villagers. At two weeks old, we're pretty much still babies."

It was the child villager's turn to look surprised. "Really? That's really weird." He was silent for a moment before he looked down at the ground sadly. "I wish I was human… that way, I'd be a kid longer."

Jesse looked sadly at the kid. "Sorry… wish there was something I could do, but I can't change who you are."

The child villager just nodded sadly before he looked back at Jesse. "Um… can I ask something?"

"Sure! What do you want to ask?"

"Can you…" The child villager squirmed nervously. "C-can you… give me a name?"

"Huh?" Jesse looked at the child villager with surprise obvious on her face, wondering why he would want her of all people to give him a name.

"Um…" The child looked down again. "That weird lady with the hat gave my dad a name, even though he hates it. But… I think it's cool that a human gives villagers human names. So… I want one too."

"Huh… well, if you really want me too…" Jesse was unsure if she should give the child villager a name… but he was asking her nicely, so how could she say no?

Jesse tried to think of a good name for the child villager. Maybe something simple? Or maybe something that sounded awesome? She wasn't entirely sure _what_ he would want, so she decided to say the first name that popped into her head.

"How about… Fortunato?" Jesse offered.

The child villager looked at her curiously. "For-tun-ah-toe…" He sounded out the name carefully. "What's it mean? It sounds like a strange name…"

"Uh... it means… to be fortunate… or lucky, in other words…" Jesse said, trying to sound like she knew what she was talking about. She couldn't remember if fortunate and lucky were synonyms, but it sounded about right.

The newly named Fortunato was silent for a moment as he digested his new name before he smiled happily. "My new name means I'm lucky! That's really cool!" He was so happy that he had a brand new name that he went over and hugged Jesse. "Thank you, Miss Jesse!"

"Aw, it was no problem, Fortunato. I'm just happy I could help out," Jesse said as she hugged the child villager back before they separated.

"I can't wait to tell everyone!" Fortunato said happily before he frowned. "Er, maybe not my dad. He probably won't be too happy with it." His smile appeared back on his face. "But I'll introduce it to other humans who visit our village."

Before Jesse could say anything else, both she and Fortunato heard a throat clearing sound. Looking over to where the sound came from, Jesse saw Carter looking at them from the center of town before he tilted his head as if he was calling Fortunato over.

With a sad sigh, Fortunato turned back to Jesse. "I guess I gotta go… will you be coming back to our village, Miss Jesse?"

Jesse nodded. "Yep! Maybe not right away, but me and my friends will come back to visit."

That brighten the child's face. "Really? I can't wait!" With that, Fortunato turned around and began walking over to his father, but not before turning around and waving farewell. "Bye, Miss! See you soon!"

"See ya' around, Fortunato!" Jesse called back as she waved farewell to the adorable child villager.

What was she doing before the child villager wanted to talk to her? Ah, right, Jesse was going to see what her friends were talking about.

Jesse began to walk over to her friends and she saw that they were still discussing something. As soon as she was close enough, she called out to them, "Hey guys, am I interrupting anything?"

"Oh, hey Jesse," Axel said, smirking to himself. "We were just talking about normal things like we normally do. You know… normal things…"

"Axel, what are you doing?" Olivia asked as if she wasn't sure what her friend was going on about.

"Acting like everything's normal because, you know, everything's as normal as normal can be."

Olivia raised an eyebrow and narrowed her eyes. "I don't think it's normal for you to be saying 'normal' that much."

Axel looked almost offended. "I'll have you know, it's perfectly normal to be saying normal that much. How could it be un-normal? Because…"

"Oookay!" Lukas decided at that moment to interrupt Axel's chatter. "I really think we should get going…" He turned and whispered quietly to Axel, "…And maybe when I say 'act like everything's normal', don't go overboard!"

Axel just rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, fine. I thought I was doing great, though!"

Lukas just sighed. "Sure, Axel… sure you did. You didn't make anything seem suspicious at all…" He said with a touch of sarcasm.

Jesse looked between the two whispering men before she turned to Olivia and began to whisper to her friend. "Did they have another fight? I thought Axel was going to apologize."

Olivia began whispering back. "He did. Lukas accepted Axel's apology and everything, thank goodness." She then looked between the two. "Although, I think their bickering is going to be a regular thing now."

Jesse just smiled happily. "Hey, if that's their version of getting along and they try not to strangle each other, then I'm all for it!"

Olivia grimaced slightly. "But Ivor and Soren bickered all the time when we went to the Far Lands and I'm pretty sure they were on the verge of strangling each other every time they said one word to each other."

Jesse frowned as she recalled that trip. "Uh, that was… special circumstances? I'm pretty sure we all wanted to strangle Ivor when the Witherstorm was on the loose."

"Hey guys," Malia called out to her heroes, causing them to stop their conversations and turn to her. "As much as I'm all for eavesdropping on everyone's conversation, we should probably get going now or else we won't get back to town until after sunset and I'm sure we all want to get back to town as soon as we can before then."

"Ah, right!" Jesse smiled at her friends and raised her fist excitedly into the air. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get moving!"

As soon as everyone had gotten on their llamas, the group proceeded to leave the village and went on their way.

The Order of the Stone was finally going home.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

"Okay, how about this? Would you rather fight a hundred parrot-sized endermen or ten endermen-sized parrots?" Olivia looked behind her and asked her tenacious friend a very difficult question.

"Hm…" Jesse considered the question as she subconsciously petted her llama's fur. "Are the endermen aggressive?"

Olivia shook her head. "Only if you look at them."

"Then I'll have to go with the parrot-sized endermen," Jesse said with a confident grin. "They're practically as big as sticks and all I have to do is move my foot to knock one of them down." She mimicked what it would look like with her arm as she held it front of her and then tilted it downward. "Ahhhh, timber!" As soon as her arm was vertical, Jesse made an over-exaggerated fake dying sound. "And then poof goes the tiny enderman."

Olivia let out a laugh. "And you're going to do that to all one hundred endermen?"

"Of course I would! It'd still be hilarious even if I did it a hundred times!"

Olivia continued to chuckle as she shook her head good-heartily at her friend's silliness. "And what about the parrots?"

Jesse hummed in thought for a moment before answering, "The giant parrots would be similar to the zombie-sized chickens if there wasn't for one major difference."

"And that would be?"

"Well, they can fly. Unless you have a bow, they'd be a pain to take down," Jesse said before she winced. "Not to mention if they try to sit on your shoulder, they could crush you to death." She shook her head solemnly. "What a way to go… crushed by a giant parrot butt…"

Both friends remained silent. The only sounds that could be heard was the gentle breeze wafting through the leaves of the trees and the clip-clopping of the llama's hoofs as they continued on their path.

Suddenly, Jesse tried to stifle a laugh that almost erupted her throat. Olivia then chuckled afterward and, before the both of them knew it, they began to laugh loudly.

"Oh man," Olivia said as her laughter died down. "It feels like it's been ages since we've done a 'Would You Rather?' question session." She then looked toward the front of the caravan and saw Axel and Lukas on their llamas. "Shame we can't get the guys to join us without yelling at the top of our lungs." Olivia then shook her head. "Seriously, why couldn't we get on the llamas _before_ they get into their line? That way we wouldn't be separated from each other like this."

"It's fine, Olivia," Jesse said reassuringly. "Besides, like you said, we haven't done this in ages. The last time I remember doing this between just the two of us was before the Witherstorm and that was months ago."

"That's true… we've been so busy these past several months that we've hardly had any time to ourselves."

"Hey, we may be busy, but that doesn't mean we can't make time to just hang out," Jesse said with a smile. "And even if we're STILL busy in the upcoming months, we'll STILL try and make time to hang out with each other."

"Yeah…" Olivia mumbled as her eyes grew distant and she grew silent.

Jesse looked at her friends, confused why her friend's mood suddenly changed. "Uh… is everything okay?"

"Uh, yeah… everything's fine," Olivia answered before she began to rummage through her thoughts.

Should she finally tell Jesse? Olivia wasn't entirely sure she should. They were having such a good time just talking and having fun with each other that she wasn't sure if she should ruin that with what was going on. Maybe she should put it off…

 _'Are you kidding? With our luck, we'll get swept up in something again and you'll never get the chance.'_

Her own words echoed in her head, the ones that she had told Axel before he finally apologized to Lukas. Olivia's shoulders slumped, realizing that if she didn't follow her own advice, she'd be pretty much be a hypocrite. It was the perfect time to tell Jesse what she'd been keeping secret and she was still completely anxious to say anything.

 _'Whatever you decide on… whatever is going on, we'll be there for you.'_

Lukas might not have had any idea what was going on, but what he said was true. Olivia knew that whatever would happen, her friends would be there for her with whatever she decided on. She knew that… of course she knew that, but that still didn't make her any less anxious. However, the fact that one of her friends said that to her directly calmed her down, if ever so slightly.

Gathering up all the courage she had, Olivia was finally ready to reveal what her secret was.

"Actually…" Olivia began, focusing on her friend that was riding behind her. "… There's something I've been meaning to talk to you about."

"Oh? What's up?" Jesse asked, wondering what she needed to talk to her about. Whatever it was, it must have been serious with the way Olivia was beginning to fidget.

"Um… okay…" Olivia mumbled before she took a deep breath. "So… uh, remember when you and Lukas and Petra and Ivor were stuck in the Portal Network?"

"Yes, we did get back from that long adventure over a week ago," Jesse said, unsure what that had anything to do with what they were talking about then and there.

"Ah, right. Of course you remember…" Olivia mumbled to herself, mentally scolding herself for asking such a stupid question. "So… uh, something happened a few weeks before you guys got back. Something… I guess you could say something big."

"Oh?" Jesse wondered aloud, her attention completely focused on the still fidgety Olivia.

"Yeah…" Olivia took another deep breath before she continued. "Anyway, a few weeks ago, someone came to see me… someone from Redstonia."

"Redstonia?" Jesse had never personally been to Redstonia. She knew that the place held several of the leading experts in redstone engineering and that the place itself was amazingly beautiful and technologically advanced, according to Olivia.

"Yeah… Calvin, one of Ellegaard's assistants came to visit me…" Olivia paused. "Or… I guess you could say, Calvin WAS one of her assistants. Ellegaard stepped down from being leader of Redstonia, and-"

"WHAT?!" Jesse couldn't help but voice her shock. "Why? What happened?"

"Apparently, people weren't too happy when they heard that the old Order lied about defeating the Enderdragon," Olivia said with a sigh. "There were rumors going around that if she lied about the Enderdragon, then what else could she have lied about? People were saying that she plagiarized other people's works and that she was a great big phony. There were even protests to have her admit that she did steal other people's ideas, even if nobody had any proof something like that happened." Olivia just shook her head, saddened how people could be like that. "Calvin said that, eventually, the rumors and ungrateful citizens became too much for her and she stepped down." Olivia looked down sadly. "I know that lying about the Enderdragon's defeat was terrible, but as far as I know, she didn't lie about all her amazing inventions. It seems really unfair to spread rumors over something nobody had any proof on."

"Yeah, no kidding," Jesse said, frowning unhappily and clearly displeased by what happened to Ellegaard. Then she looked at Olivia curiously. "Calvin traveled all the way from Redstonia just to tell you that?"

"Uh… no, there's other things." Olivia took a deep breath, preparing for what she was going to say next. "There was a lot of discussion going on and… and… theywantmetobethenextleader," Olivia tried to spit out the last part out as fast as she could before she lost her nerve.

Jesse just blinked in response, looking completely lost. "I'm sorry, what was that last part? You were talking a little too fast for me to keep up."

Olivia deflated slightly before she picked herself back up, steeled herself, and spoke as clearly as she could.

"I, Olivia, was asked to be the next leader of Redstonia."

Jesse's mouth dropped and her eyes widened, staring at Olivia in complete and utter shock. Then slowly, her mouth formed a large smile and she looked like she was about to burst from excitement. "Oh. My. GOSH! That's so cool! That means that you get to be the head honcho for all the redstone experts in Redstonia!"

"Ahah… yeah, Axel did say something like that when he heard too," Olivia chuckled, remembering how Calvin tried to talk to her in private, but Axel had wanted to hear what was going on so he decided to eavesdrop on the whole conversation. When Calvin revealed the big news to Olivia, he couldn't help but burst into the room as if he was a stampede of cows and voice his excitement. Loudly.

"So Axel knows about it too? Then…" Jesse began to say before she trailed off as her brow furrowed and she looked at Olivia in confusion. "Wait, if this happened weeks ago, then why wait until now to tell me? This seems like something you'd gush to me over."

Ah, and therein lies the clincher. Olivia's heart pounded in her chest, completely anxious to what she was about to reveal next.

"Uh, well, after Calvin told me and I felt like I was going to faint, he… uh, he mentioned something else to me," Olivia said before she took another deep breath and spoke again. "He said that since I'd be the new leader of Redstonia, I should move closer to where the city is to be closer to all the citizens and experts are so I could work with them." A pause. "A city that's far away from where we live now." Another pause. "A city that's far away from you guys."

Jesse's eyes widened as she realized what Olivia was trying to say.

Moving to Redstonia to be their leader would mean moving away from their home and her friends.

"I-I mean," Olivia stuttered out, "You could probably still visit me, but Redstonia is so far away that the only way to get there within a day would be taking the tracks in the Nether, but that'd STILL take a long time and since I could have stuff to do in Redstonia and everyone else could have Order of the Stone stuff, we'd probably hardly ever see each other again."

Olivia couldn't stop herself from saying more and more about what had been on her mind for the past few weeks. It was as if a dam had burst and there was no stopping her from telling Jesse everything.

"Then there's the fact that I'd be the LEADER of a whole CITY! I mean, me?! Of all people?! Isn't there anyone else that should be better qualified to run a city full of highly experienced redstone engineers? Why choose me of all people? Is it because I'm a part of the new Order of the Stone? Is that it? I've only been a part of the Order for six months and that suddenly means I have the experience to run a whole city?!"

Jesse remained silent as she waited patiently for Olivia to continue her rant.

"And then there's Axel! He says that I should go for it, like it's no big deal! Says that I'd get to hang out with all the other redstone brainiacs and make cool new redstone builds… but doesn't he realize that I won't be able to hang out like we normally do? Does he think that I can just come and go whenever I want?" Olivia scoffed. "We all can't be the great 'King of Boom Town' and come and go whenever we please! It's a city of engineers, not the city of griefers! Redstonia doesn't destroy things willy-nilly! Redstonia spends time to make great redstone inventions that could wow the whole world!"

Olivia then pointed at Jesse, who looked confused at the sudden finger point. "And then there's you! You've been stuck in the Portal Network while I wasn't sure if you were alive or dead or whatever's in-between. When Calvin told me that I could be leader, everyone was still gone and I didn't want to go rule a whole city, like… like I just forgot about you guys! Like I gave up hope and moved on! No, I told Calvin that I'd think about it and I wondered what Jesse would think! Gone for two months and I still… I still worried about you and everyone else and I just… I just…" Olivia felt tears well up and she moved a hand up to her eyes as she tried to wipe it away, but as much as wanted her tears to stay away, they built up again and began to roll down her cheeks.

"Olivia…" Jesse looked sadly at her friend, at a loss for words.

Olivia let out a sad sniffle and continued talking, "And then you guys came back and you were okay and I just… I just didn't want to say anything. I wanted to hang out just like we did before you were stuck in the Portal Network and I kept putting it off. I even made Axel promise not to say anything until I got the courage to tell you, Jesse. Yet, I was still afraid to say anything. I thought that maybe if I didn't say anything, I wouldn't have to go to Redstonia and move away from you guys and not have amazing adventures with everyone ever again…"

Olivia took a shaky breath and looked away from Jesse. "But… but what do I even do on those adventures, anyway? All I do is get in the way and I end up getting thrown up onto a chandelier because I'm not good at fighting up close. Sure, my redstone traps can take out normal mobs easily enough, but what about when it counts? What about when I tried to trap Culain and I thought he was caught? He got out like it was child's play and I get covered in cobwebs! Sure, I built that farm for the village, but it's not going to help when vindicators transform into enderman and try to cut your head off!" She shouted out before her shoulders slumped and she looked down at the passing forest floor. "Culain was right… I do feel like a burden."

Jesse immediately tensed up and a look of determination filled her eyes before she started to shift herself in her seat. She lifted her feet up onto the saddle before she held onto the llama's neck and tried to maneuver herself so she could attempt to stand up on the llama's back.

"Buh-wark!" Jesse's llama cried out in protest, confused why its rider was holding onto its neck so tightly.

"Sorry, but could you walk a bit faster until you're next to my friend's llama? Or maybe lower your neck so I could try and jump over to her?" Jesse pleaded with her llama. The llama grunted a bit before it began to walk a bit faster, breaking away from its place at the end of the line until it was practically rubbing up close to Olivia's llama.

Olivia looked up with tear-filled eyes as she saw her friend suddenly right next to her on her llama. "Jesse, w-what are you doing?"

Jesse reached out to her friend and pulled her closer, enveloping her in a tight embrace. "I'm giving my best friend a hug, that's what I'm doing."

Olivia was stunned silent for a moment before she hugged her friend back, burying her face in Jesse's shoulder, ignoring the hard armor that made it slightly uncomfortable to cry on as she let out a small sob.

"Olivia…" Jesse began, "I am _so_ sorry; I had _no_ idea that you felt that way when everyone was gone. I mean, I knew that you were worried, but I didn't think… I didn't think it was tearing you up inside like that." Jesse took a wavered breath as she tried to hold back her own tears. How could she have been so blind to her friend's pain? What kind of friend was she to not be there when her friend was in emotional distress?

"Jesse…" Olivia muttered, her tears beginning to stop. "There's nothing to apologize about. You couldn't have known what I was thinking. I was just… keeping it to myself. Heck, even Axel doesn't know I felt that way."

Jesse just sighed before she released Olivia from their hug so she could look her dear friend in the eyes. "Well, thank you for telling me how you felt. It must have been hard…" Jesse paused for a moment before she looked at Olivia with fire in her eyes. "And _never_ call yourself a burden! I don't care what that jerk Culain says how you feel, you are _not_ a burden! You're the most talented redstone engineer I have ever known. I heard you were at a major disadvantage with those vindicators… and with Culain?" Jesse practically growled out the name. "We were all defeated by him. I got owned in that duel, Lukas got punched in the face and almost got killed by zombies, and I'm pretty sure Axel got kicked in the head by him and also got covered in cobwebs."

Olivia looked thoughtful at Jesse's point and she put a hand to her chin. "That's… true."

"And you know what I think about you becoming the leader of an entire city?" Jesse asked, bringing Olivia's attention back to her. "I think that they'd be the luckiest city in the world if you were running things. I mean, you're caring, you have amazing ideas when it comes to redstone, and you'll help out anyone in need. No wonder they asked you to come run things," Jesse said with a friendly wink.

Olivia just let out a small chuckle as she wiped the last of her tears from her eyes. "Thanks, Jesse… I needed that."

"It's no problem, Olivia. You're one of my best friends… I'll always do what I can to support you and be there when I can," Jesse said before letting out a laugh. "Unless it involves strapping TNT to your feet like Axel did when he wanted to try and find an alternative way to use ladders. Then I'm going to have to stop you whether you like it or not."

"Trust me, I don't think it'll come to that," Olivia said with a laugh, happy that they were back to making jokes again.

"And if you do decide to become leader of Redstonia, don't think I won't visit there every chance I get! Because I bet me and the others will visit you so often, we'd be considered citizens of Redstonia! And… and I'll drag you from whatever redstone invention you're working on to go on a good old fashioned Order of the Stone adventure with us! Because once a member of the Order of the Stone, always a member!" Jesse said before she got into a heroic pose. "As leader of the new Order, I hearby decree that you are a permanent member of the Order forever… and beyond… and to the End and back! And even beyond the Portal Network! And-"

"Okay, Jesse, I get it," Olivia put a hand to her exuberant friend's shoulder. "Even if I move to Redstonia, you guys will always be my friends and we'll try to hang out when we can," She said, letting herself smile slightly.

"Exactly!" Jesse said with a big grin. She then glanced over towards the front of the caravan before she looked at Olivia curiously. "So, are you gonna tell Lukas and Petra soon? Do you want me to be there when you tell them?"

"Yeah… maybe in a few days," Olivia said with a shrug. "And… I'd like that, Jesse."

"Then I'll be there!" Jesse said with a thumbs-up.

Looking up at the sky to see where the sun was positioned so she could guess the time, Jesse noted that it wasn't even close to sunset. She turned back to her friend with a smile. "So, do you want to continue with our 'Would You Rather' question session or do you want to talk about something else?"

Olivia briefly considered her offer before she nodded eagerly. "I'm game if you are! I believe it's your turn to come up with a question."

"Ooh, that's true. Let me think…" Jesse took on a look of concentration.

As Olivia watched her tenacious friend think long and hard about her question, Olivia couldn't help but smile to herself.

Even though it was hard to tell Jesse her secret, Olivia was glad that she had… because she knew whether she decided to become leader of Redstonia or not, Jesse and the others would support her, no matter what.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

As the caravan traveled down the gravel road, a familiar red clay gate came into view as the Order came closer and closer to their town. The moment they were close enough, the caravan stopped and the gate slowly opened up, welcoming their heroes back home.

"Woo! Finally we're back!" Axel cheered happily, getting off his llama. He looked behind him and saw that Lukas was still fast asleep on top of his llama. "Hey, dude wake up! We're finally here!"

"Huh?" Lukas lifted his head up tiredly with a yawn. As soon as he saw those familiar gates, Lukas perked up. "Oh hey, we made it."

"Yep, and you were asleep practically the entire time," Malia said as she released her llama from her lead and looked back at the two men. "That's what you get for staying up almost most of the night, mister 'oh, I'm just gonna stay up half the night because my journal is infinitely better than actually sleeping!'"

"I was on a roll, okay?" Lukas grumbled loudly.

"Sure, sure… you sure were extremely into that journal there, huh?" Malia smiled slyly, looking extremely pleased about something.

Lukas wasn't sure he liked that glint in her eyes as she said that. "I'm… not sure what you're trying to imply, and frankly, I don't want to know," He said as he proceeded to get off Blossom.

With a shrug, Malia prepared to get off Horace, she looked up at the opened gates and looked at it in awe. "Oh well, at least we finally made it back to Beacon Town... which has a lot less beacons than I would've expect-" Before she could finish her sentence, her foot got caught on the side of the horse's saddle and she proceeded to fall off her horse and landed face first onto the gravel road. "… ow."

"Wow, deja-vu," Jesse commented as she and Olivia walked up to the front of the line of llamas as she looked down at the trader and offered a hand up. "Are you okay?"

"Guh… yeah, like I said before, happens all the time," Malia said as she took Jesse's hand and picked herself back up. "But I'm more than okay! I just got back on an adventure with the Order of the Stone! It was both terrifying and exciting at the same time! I'd love to join you guys again!" Malia released Jesse hand and saluted the Order's leader. "If you guys ever need a ride anywhere, then just look no further than Malia the Marvelous Merchant!" She then proceeded to shift around in her inventory as if she was looking for something only for her to stop and frown. "Shoot, I used up the last firework I had when I was telling Lukas about my marvelous merchandise."

"Uh…" Jesse stared at the strange trader, unsure why she needed fireworks, but decided not to ask. "Well, thanks for taking us to the village and back. We definitely owe you." She said before she struck a heroic pose. "If you need help with anything at all, then the Order of the Stone will be glad to help!"

Malia just squeaked happily as she stared at Jesse, completely awestruck. "The Order of the Stone just agreed to help me with anything! Eeee~!" The strange trader just smiled gleeful, trying not to scream with joy and hurt her heroes' ears.

"Well, look who's finally back."

Hearing a familiar voice, the entire Order looked over at the opened gate. Jesse smiled widely as recognized a familiar face. "Petra!"

Clad in her blue armor with yellow trims, the tall red head leaned on the side of the opened gate and waved casually at her friends. "Hey Jesse, I was wondering if you guys went off on an adventure or something. I was beginning to feel a little left out," Petra said with a smirk.

Jesse walked up to her friend and rubbed the back of her head. "Sorry, but there was a village in trouble and you were in the Nether. We would have brought you with us if you were around."

Petra just nodded and looked at Jesse curiously. "A village in trouble, huh? Were a bunch of griefers trying to blow up their houses or something?"

Jesse cringed. "Not… exactly."

As Jesse gave Petra a quick rundown on what happened when they were gone, Malia stared at Petra in amazement. "Holy cow, that's Petra the Punisher! Wooow, she looks just as cool and tough as people says she is!"

"Yes! That's the perfect title for her," Axel said, nodding in approval. "Sounds completely awesome! It's almost as good as the TNT Terror!"

"I'm sorry, the what?" Olivia asked, looking over at Axel, clearly confused what they were talking about.

"The TNT Terror. That's what people will call me from now on!" Axel said, looking incredibly smug and striking a heroic pose with his arms in his air as if he was flexing.

"Right…" Olivia said, turning away from Axel and wisely decided not to ask more about the subject.

Lukas said nothing as he paid the whole exchange no mind and continued to watch the two girls talking.

As soon as Jesse had finished telling Petra a brief summary of their adventure, the red-headed warrior looked annoyed. "Seriously? All that happened and I missed it?" She crossed her arms. "Man, I go to our Nether for the first time in forever and I miss out on shape-shifting illagers and a dueling kidnapper. Knew I shouldn't have dropped everything to do that favor…"

"Ah, right, Lukas said you went to the Nether to get something for an old client," Jesse said as she looked at Petra, curiosity obvious on her face. "Did you get what the client wanted?"

Petra stared at Jesse as if she was slightly confused and raised an eyebrow, glancing behind her friend for a few seconds. Before Jesse could turn around to see what she was looking at, Petra turned her attention back to Jesse with a grin. "…Yeah, I did get what the client wanted. I was just about to deliver it too until I saw you guys at the gate."

"Oh, well, it's a good thing we ran into each other then," Jesse replied, unsure why Petra acted strange for a moment there. "We were going to head home so we probably wouldn't have seen each other until tomorrow… and…" Jesse trailed off as something clicked in her head.

Oh… right…!

Jesse forgot she didn't have a house! She didn't _have_ a home to go back to! She forgot _again_!

"Oh for the love of…" Jesse grumbled as she brought a hand up to her face and dragged it down slowly. She was talking about it with Olivia and Lukas before they left! How focused was she on their adventure that she forgot about that entirely?

"Uh, you okay, Jesse?" Petra asked, a little concerned why her friend looked suddenly incredibly annoyed.

"Hm? Oh, uh, yeah! I'm great!" Jesse said, putting on a smile and chuckled nervously. She wasn't sure if she should bring it up to Petra that she forgot to build herself one of the most basic things to make in their world. Maybe she'd tell her later.

Oh well, guess Jesse would have to sleep in Order Hall's basement again. Maybe see if she could talk to Olivia and Lukas the next day and see if they could help her with her Builder's Block…

"Hey, Jesse?" The forgetful leader snapped out of her thoughts as she turned and saw Olivia coming up to her. "I've been thinking… would you like to have a sleepover at my place tonight? I'll invite Axel and it'd be like when we used to have sleepovers at the old treehouse."

Jesse looked momentarily surprised at Olivia's offer before she couldn't help but smile excitedly. "Like to? I'd _love_ to! We haven't had a sleepover in forever!"

"Did someone say sleepover?" Axel asked, almost popping up in between the two girls and looked rather excited. "I'll try to come up with my scariest ghost story yet! Not to mention bring so many cookies, we'd enter a cookie coma!"

"Nice!" Jesse high-fived her overexcited friend before turning to Petra. "Would you like to join us? Always room for one more."

"Ooh, gonna have to take a raincheck on that," Petra replied with a shrug. "Still gotta deliver the stuff the client wanted. Maybe catch some 'zzz's after that."

"Oh, right. That's too bad," Jesse said before she looked at Lukas. "Uh…"

"Before you ask, I have other plans. Maybe next time?"

"Well, alright." Jesse just shrugged before she turned back towards Axel and Olivia. "Looks like it's just the three of us."

"Hey, that just means more cookies for the rest of us!" Axel said before he headed off into a direction. "Let's stop by my place first and pick up my stash of cookies."

"Axel, I have cookies at my house too." Olivia quickly followed Axel before he got too far ahead.

"Dude, I've seen your stash of cookies. Mine is way bigger and more primed and ready for an all-night sleepover!"

"… Okay, you got me there."

As Jesse began to follow her two friends as they discussed cookies, she turned around and waved at Lukas, Petra, and Malia. "See you guys later!" With those final words, she faced forward again, and rushed after her friends.

"Bye! Buh-bye! See you around!" Malia called out to her heroes before she let out a deep sigh. "Aw, I kinda wished I was asked to join the sleepover. Probably for the best since I would've said no, but…" Malia shook her head before she turned towards her llamas (plus one horse) and pulled out a lead and put it on a llama. "Alright, let's get everyone rounded up and head for the inn. Llamas ho!" With that, Malia lead her llamas through the gate to see if she could spot an inn to stay at.

Petra glanced towards the passing line of llamas before she turned to Lukas as he stepped up to her. She spotted the black eye on his face and whistled. "Nice shiner. Going for the tough look?"

Lukas winced slightly. "I don't exactly feel tough with this," Lukas grumbled before he cleared his throat and attempted to change topics. "So…"

With a roll of her eyes, Petra turned towards the town and began to walk away as she gestured him to follow her. "Alright, let's do this."

"Uh, okay?" Lukas was unsure where Petra wanted to lead him, but he followed nonetheless.

As soon as Petra had stopped in front of an alleyway, Lukas looked at the dark alley before turning to Petra with an unamused expression. "Seriously? We're going to do this in an alley?"

"Hey, you apparently want to keep it a secret, mister 'client'. Figured we'd do the whole shebang while we're at it," Petra said before she glanced around as saw a few people walking down the street minding their own business. "Besides, I don't want people thinking I'm back into the trading business. The less people who know about this, the better."

"Well, I mean, I wouldn't call it a 'secret'," Lukas replied, as if he was trying to defend himself. Still, he went into the alleyway with Petra following close behind.

"Hey, you're the one that told Jesse that I was getting something for an 'old client'. That sure sounds like a secret to me."

"I am an old client, aren't I? I mean, I've asked you to get me stuff from the Nether before…"

As soon as the two reached the middle of the alleyway, Petra stopped and leaned against the wall with her arms crossed. "Yeah, but it was all materials for your builds. Netherack, glowstone, and I even mined up all that quartz ore for you to make blocks out of." Petra reached into her inventory and pulled out a blaze rod and held it in her hand as she pointed it at him. "This stuff seems kinda out of left field for you to be asking me to get."

"I guess that's true… I've never asked you to get me those things before," Lukas said as he glanced at the blaze rod Petra was holding. "Still, thanks for getting this stuff on such short notice. I really owe you one." He reached out to take the blaze rod from Petra before she casually moved it away from his reach. "Hey-"

"The only thing you owe me is a bit of an explanation why you need all this stuff in the first place. You said you'd tell me once I got it."

"I did?" Lukas wondered, trying to search his memory for the exact words he had said.

"Yeah, and I remember the conversation going a little something like this," Petra said before she cleared her throat and tried to lower her voice as she attempted to mimic Lukas. "'Oh, hey Petra, my good buddy ol' pal of mine! Can I ask for a little favor?'" Petra switched to her normal voice. "Sure, Lukas. What do you need?"

"I'm pretty sure I've never said 'good buddy ol' pal of mine' to you… ever."

Ignoring Lukas, Petra proceeded to mimic him again. "'Oh, nothing much, can you get me some blaze rods, some nether wart, and maybe a few soul sand blocks from the Nether? I'll owe you one!'" Petra switched back again. "Gee, I don't know, Lukas. That seems kind of short notice and you're not going to tell me why?" She mimicked him again, only this time she made him sound over exaggeratedly pleading. "'Please? I'll explain later, I just really need you to get that stuff for me. Please, Petra, you're my only hope!'"

With that final mimic, she grinned smugly at Lukas, having made her point loud and clear.

Lukas, on the other hand, looked the opposite of amused. "I don't sound like that," He said before he sighed. "But you're right. I… do owe you an explanation since I asked you to go to the Nether just for me."

Hoo boy, where to begin? Lukas wasn't entirely sure, but he figured he'd start at the beginning.

"Do you remember when we were trapped in the Portal Network?"

Petra just blinked at the question before she narrowed her eyes. "Hm, I don't know. Do I remember traveling from portal to portal, trying to find our way home and eventually finding myself at the edge of my breaking point after only two months and had that fight with Jesse?" She shrugged. "Sorry, doesn't ring a bell."

Hearing her sarcasm, Lukas just nodded. "Right, of course you remember." He rubbed the back of his head as he tried to think of what else to say. "Okay, how about this: do you remember when I was fighting Aiden and got kicked off the side and fell into the 'void', only to survive because there was actually land and water underneath?"

Petra's eyes widened before her shoulders slumped at the memory. "Uh, yeah… thought you and Jesse had fallen to your death when you both got kicked off."

Lukas sighed sadly. "You and me both…" He took a deep breath and continued. "How about when I chased after the White Pumpkin and I ended up holding the mask and almost got framed for the murders?"

"Yes, and you got locked in a closet because of that."

"If Cassie wasn't trying to pin the whole thing on me, I probably would have been murdered like the rest of them…" Lukas began to pace in front of Petra, sounding more and more frustrated after each question. "How about when we got chipped by PAMA? Or ended getting crushed by those pistons from the Games?"

"I still get headaches whenever someone says 'useful' and I now know what it feels like to be crushed to death. Not a pleasant feeling…" Petra said as she watched Lukas pacing. "And that has to do with this because…?"

"Because we almost died every time, Petra. Heck, _we_ did die once!" Lukas almost yelled out, beginning to look angry. "Almost every time we got into an adventure in the Portal Network, we survived by the skin of our teeth and barely made it out of the portals. If luck wasn't on our side, then what would have happened?" He turned to Petra, fire in his eyes. "We'd be dead, enslaved, or worse! That's what we'd be! Because we weren't tough enough! Because we weren't prepared! Because I… I…" Lukas trailed off, his anger diminishing and he almost looked haunted. "Because… I feel like I let the people that I care about down… because I wasn't strong enough when I needed to be the most."

Petra just stared with wide eyes and stunned by Lukas' rant, unsure what to even say after that.

Lukas sighed sadly, leaning against the wall next to Petra. "Sorry, I guess I just sort of… lost it there." He couldn't even look his friend in the eyes after all that he said. "I know that when the Order works together as a team, then we can take care of most things, but… but that's not always the case. There are times when we have to fight something alone or our friend needs to rely on us for something and I just feel… that every time I try to do something on my own, it doesn't help anyone."

He turned his sights to the ground and glared at it. "Especially with what happened at the village. That Culain guy was running away with a villager and I thought it would be a good idea to jump at him from the roof." Lukas chuckled dryly. "Yeah, that didn't exactly go well. I ended up with a black eye and I almost get killed by zombies from a potion that jerk used." He sighed sadly. "If it wasn't for Jesse, I'd have probably been a goner."

As his friend crossed his mind, Lukas perked up, if only slightly. "Heck, there's no way we could have survived even half the stuff we've faced if it wasn't for her. Jesse's usually the one that pulls us through whatever challenge we face in the end and I really, really admire her for that. When the chips are down, all of us can rely on her. She's kind, brave, and she puts her friends and anybody who's in danger before her needs. She's just… amazing."

But that small perk up didn't last long as he frowned sadly. "But she's just one person. When Jesse was fighting Culain, she was by herself and she lost. The rest of us were trapped in some… weird invisible barrier thing. Even if she didn't agree to the one-on-one duel, we still would have been defeated and there would have been nothing we could have done about that. If Culain wanted to, he could have killed all of us just like he did with those illagers." Lukas then glanced at Petra. "… I'm scared, Petra. I'm scared that there may be something we try to face in the future and there's no way we could survive it. Things feel like they're getting tougher and tougher for us and there's no way to stop it. I feel like something's going to happen and I don't know if Jesse would be able to handle it. I'm… I'm just afraid she might…" Lukas trailed off, afraid to say what he dreaded the most.

He straightened up, and looked at Petra with new determination. " _That's_ why I asked you to go to the Nether to get that stuff. Because… I wanted to try something a bit different that could help us out and maybe, for once, be someone that our friends could rely on and…" A pause. "… Not be a burden."

Throughout his entire rant, Petra did nothing but stare wide eyed at Lukas as he let out probably more than he meant to. After a few moments to make sure he had nothing more to add, she took a deep breath. "Wow. Just… wow. Okay, when I asked for an explanation, I didn't expect that! Like… seriously, I did not expect you to just vent like that and tell me something that was almost as long as someone's life story." She just shook her head as she tried to go over everything that Lukas had told her. "I mean… dude, I had no idea you had so many issues!"

"Hey, you wanted an explanation and I gave you one!" Lukas almost snarked, not finding comfort that his friend called what he had told her 'issues'.

Petra shrugged sheepishly. "Sorry, just… woo, a lot to process." She reached into her inventory and pulled out the rest of the items Lukas had asked for. "Anyway, here. I think you gave me what you owed me and then some."

Lukas stared at the items for a moment before he eagerly took them and pocketed them in his inventory. "Thanks again, Petra."

"Though, I gotta ask…" Petra watched her friend put it in his inventory and put a hand to her a chin in thought. "I know you said that you wanted to try something different, but… why potion making stuff of all things?"

"Well, I'm not as a proficient at redstone like Olivia is, I'm definitely not as… destructive as Axel, and there's no way I could even come close to being as fierce as you when it comes to sword fighting," Lukas explained before he shrugged. "I thought that since Ivor was off exploring other worlds with the Atlas, I could try to make some stuff that could help us if we're in a bind. Ivor did say he had given Jesse some of his potions while we were on those other worldly adventures and apparently they helped out a ton. I guess I figured I could learn to whip something up that could help us when we need it."

Of course, it also depended on if Lukas didn't accidentally blow himself up if he tried to teach himself how to make potions. He was a builder, not an alchemist. This was completely new territory for him.

Still, he was willing to give it a shot. Maybe Lukas could improve himself so that he didn't get his butt handed to him if he ended up in a solo fight and maybe give his friends some buffs from the potions.

Lukas briefly wondered if Ivor had any potion making handbooks in the Order Hall's basement. He made a mental note to check later.

"Hey," Petra said, interrupting Lukas' train of thought. "If you're interested, I could help you out with the sword fighting part." She grinned smugly. "I am the one who helped drill Jesse with pretty much everything I know about sword fighting after the Witherstorm incident. Shouldn't be that hard to give you a few pointers." The glint in her eyes gave Lukas chills down his spine. "Though, I gotta warn you, I am a _brutal_ teacher. It'll probably feel like I sent you through boot camp by the time I'm done with you."

"You are not sugarcoating it, are you?" Lukas asked, already imagining all the bruises Petra's 'training sessions' could inflict. "I'll, uh, think about it."

"Hey, suit yourself. Door's always open if you ever decide," Petra shrugged before she stepped away from the wall she was leaning on and stretched. "How about we head out of this alleyway now? Business is done, so there's no need to be here any longer."

"Gladly," Lukas responded as both he and Petra made their way out of the alley.

After a few moments of silence, a thought crossed Petra's mind. "Now that I think about it, why didn't you tell Jesse about you needing stuff from the Nether? This doesn't seem like something you'd keep a secret about."

"Oh, that? Well… since we were about to leave to go on a mission to help villagers, I didn't think it was that important to mention back then. Jesse had enough on her plate as it was." Lukas shrugged. "I'll tell her and the others eventually."

Petra just nodded, pausing for a moment before she smirked. "You know, I'm glad you two are getting along now."

"Huh?" Lukas turned to Petra, slightly confused. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, I was just remembering from before the Witherstorm incident when you and Jesse were barely even acquaintances. Six months ago, I don't think you would have given Jesse the time of day and now you sound like you're really fond of her." Petra chuckled as she elbowed her friend. "From the way you were talking about Jesse back there, it sounds like you two are as thick as thieves now. Heck, maybe you like her a bit more than a friend, seeing as how _amazing_ you made her sound."

It was meant to be a joke; a light ribbing. Petra almost expected Lukas to laugh it off.

What Petra didn't expect, however, was Lukas doing a double-take and almost tripping over his own two feet as if he was shocked from what she had said.

Petra stopped walking as she looked over at Lukas, confused by how he had reacted before her eyes widened in realization. "Wait a sec…"

"P-Petra, that's completely ridiculous," Lukas said, trying to regain his composure as he straightened himself and hoped Petra didn't notice his slight slip up.

Petra just continued to stare at Lukas before a smug grin appeared on her face, as if she looked completely pleased with herself. "Well, well, well! You know, I was joking before…"

"Wait, I really don't think-"

"… But I didn't think it was actually true!" Petra pointed at Lukas, who looked completely cornered. "You have a crush on Jesse!"

"Petra, I don't have a crush! She's just a friend!" Lukas protested, hoping that he wasn't blushing like mad and tried to get Petra away from the subject.

But Petra was like a wolf that had found her prey; she wasn't going to let up that easily.

"Nice try, Lukas, but your face says it all," Petra said, trying to keep herself from laughing. "I have never seen you look so red before. You might as well come clean."

Lukas mentally cursed at himself. There was no way Petra was going to let up anytime soon and he knew that perfectly well. He was trapped and there was no way to get himself out of this mess.

Damn, and he was doing so well keeping it a secret too.

"Okay, maybe I have a tiny crush on her, but that's all it is! Now, will you stop trying to jump all over me?" Lukas huffed, not pleased with having to admit something that he hoped would never come to light.

Petra, either ignoring or unaware of Lukas' distress, continued to look extremely smug. "I knew it!" She reached out and patted Lukas on his back. "So, when's the big confession? Don't people who have crushes usually do some big 'reveal' or whatever?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Lukas immediately faced towards Petra and backed up, as if he was afraid of the very idea. "There is not going to be a 'reveal'! Nether, as far as I'm concerned, this conversation isn't even going to leave this alley." He crossed his arms and glared at Petra. "And this is going to stay between us, got it?"

"Easy there, Lukas. I know how to keep a secret," Petra said, raising her hands up as if to reassure her friend. "Though, I'm not sure why you don't want to tell Jesse you like her like that. I mean, you two get along pretty well now, so…"

"I have my reasons, okay? I don't owe you an explanation for that," Lukas said before he raised his hand dismissively. "Besides, it's just a crush; those things go away eventually."

Petra narrowed her eyes as if she was unsure about something before she shrugged. "Alright, fair enough. You don't want to talk about it anymore. Consider the subject dropped and this whole thing a secret between us."

Lukas stared Petra down for a few moments before he could feel himself calm down and relax. "Okay… good. Thanks, Petra," He said before he brought a hand to his face and began to grumble under his breath. "Better you finding out than Axel stumbling across it… I'd never hear the end of it."

"What was that?" Petra asked, not quite hearing what Lukas had said.

"Uh, nothing!" Lukas chuckled nervously before he looked away, mentally hitting himself for saying that out loud.

Lukas made another mental note to hide the loose papers from his journal later when he got to his house.

Maybe hide it in a chest.

Covered in obsidian blocks.

Surrounded by lava.

Where it would never see daylight again.

Petra just rolled her eyes and began to walk out of the alleyway again with Lukas.

As soon as the two exited what Petra would now call the 'Alley of Secrets', she turned to Lukas and waved at him. "Well, Lukas, it's been fun, but I really gotta hit the hay back home."

"Okay, see you later, Pet-" Lukas trailed off as he remembered something important. "Oh, wait before you go…"

"Is this another explanation or is it about a secret that 'must-not-be-named'?" Petra asked, wondering what else her friend needed to say.

"Uh, neither," Lukas said before he cleared his throat and looked completely serious as he began to speak again.

"There's something I need to talk to you about…"

* * *

 **A/N: Welp, it's been a little over two months since I last updated... sorry about that. But hopefully this twenty-thousand word chapter will make up for it. ;)**

 **Before I talk about chapter stuff, congrats on _the indecisive bird_ for getting their name chosen by the randomizer! You have now named an adorable baby villager. :3**

 **I guess you could say you were rather... _fortunate_. _*ba-tum-tish*_ xD**

 **Sorry about the other two names that weren't chosen! Maybe you guys will get another chance! :D**

 **I'm probably gonna do a couple other randomizer naming things later, but that won't be for a while. :P**

 **OKAY, NOW ONTO THE SECRETS THAT WERE REVEALED!**

 **So... Olivia might get to be the new leader of Redstonia! But she's probably gonna have to move away if she does. Aww... :(**

 **I suppose it was inevitable, though. I mean, Olivia is THE redstone user of the new Order of the Stone. She was gonna replace Ellegaard eventually, just as Axel replaces Magnus as King if you go down that route.**

 **Now, Lukas... I'm pretty sure almost everyone saw the whole 'crush on Jesse' thing coming from a mile away. I was only attempting to be slightly subtle about it.**

 **However, the question now is: How does Jesse feel about him? I'm sure if I did a poll that roughly asks 'Should Jesse get together with Lukas?', everyone would probably hit the yes option so fast, it'd break the whole poll.**

 **So, instead of that, I have other ideas how I'm going to deal with it. Maybe we'll see how Jesse sees Lukas, maybe we won't. Who can say? ;)**

 **And finally, the whole 'Lukas is going to learn how to potion' thing that no one saw coming. I was thinking of ways he could improve himself and that was one of the ideas that came to mind. 'But he's supposed to be the builder guy!', I hear people say. Well, why can't he also learn something new? Just because he mostly specializes in building, doesn't mean he can't learn something new and improve himself in fights.**

 **Besides, I always felt that Lukas would be better suited to be a support fighter instead of going in blindly and getting his butt inevitably kicked. And let's be honest, building structures isn't exactly a fighting technique. Sure, it might make him have an eye for detail when it comes to buildings, but still... not so much with the actual fighting. :/**

 **Besides, Ivor is probably off hanging out with Har- I MEAN, gallivanting through other worlds. So somebody has to be the new potion guy. ;D**

 **Next chapter is the last one for the first episode. What mysteries lie in the last chapter? Find out next time! :3**

 **BEFORE I GO, MCSM is getting a new season that's coming out July 11th! While exciting, I'm a little disappointed it's coming so soon. I thought I'd have more time with my own season two fic before it'd come out. Oh well. :/**

 **I do plan to still continue the story, despite the new stuff that'll be added to canon... I just hope me and the writers don't have the same ideas when it comes to story ideas because that would be really discouraging for this fanfic. :,D**

 **But also interesting, especially if it means I saw it coming. xD**

 **So, just assume this story is an AU as of season two, at least until I can see if can somehow squeeze this into canon.**

 **Also, there's a llama. There's a llama in the new season. I am laughing so hard right now. xD**


	10. Episode 1: Chapter 9

**CHAPTER NINE**

Jesse had woken up only to discover she was surrounded by cookies.

Actually, it was more like that they were scattered around the bed she was sleeping on and she saw a few next to her face when she had opened her eyes, but Jesse still stood by that she was surrounded.

With a groan, she sat up on her bed and glanced around the room, immediately recognizing it as Olivia's bedroom. The walls were made of spruce wood planks with a few posters that Jesse remembered giving to her at one point. The floor was made of quartz blocks with red carpeting and there was several chests in one corner of the room next to a table that probably held various redstone contraptions. There were a couple more beds other than Olivia's, though she had put down a few extra when they had moved the sleepover to her room.

Yawning, Jesse glanced toward the floor and grimaced at the mess of cookies everywhere. She and Axel had a bit of a cookie fight the night before and things had quickly gotten out of hand.

Needless to say, Olivia wasn't too pleased that her bedroom had turned into a cookie warzone and made both of her friends promise to clean up their mess later.

With a sigh, she stood up and bent down to pick up the cookies that were around her. She felt her stomach churn at the sight of them, remembering how many she had eaten the night before. While they were delicious to eat, Jesse may have gone overboard during the sleepover and eaten more than she had bargained for and had promptly drifted into a deep sleep… or rather, a cookie coma as Axel had called it. The thought of having to look – let alone eat – any more cookies almost made her sick to her stomach.

… Almost. Maybe one cookie for breakfast couldn't hurt.

Grabbing one that was lying on her bed, she began to nibble at it as she glanced over at the other beds and noticed that her friends weren't still sleeping in them. Jesse briefly wondered where they had run off to before she shrugged. They were more than likely in the living room or the kitchen.

… Which meant that Axel left her to clean up all the cookies by herself.

Deciding to scold Axel later about not picking up half his mess, Jesse picked up the rest of the cookies scattered about the room and put them in her inventory, despite the feeling that it was getting full. She'd have to organize her mess later and clear out the failed house designs that she was still carrying around.

Jesse made a little more room in her inventory as soon as she had taken out her special armor. She had decided to remove it to feel more comfortable at the sleepover and opted to wear her favorite overalls instead. It reminded her of when she used to wear it during their sleepovers all that time ago.

After she slipped on her armor, she exited Olivia's bedroom and made her trek down the small hall until she walked into the living room. The walls were made with red clay blocks on the top half and the bottom half was made from brown clay blocks. The floor was still made from quartz blocks and in the center of the room was a table made of spruce wood with a single flower pot holding a poppy that had a few chairs next to it and a couch on one side of the room.

"Guys? You around here?" Jesse called out, hoping to get an idea where her friends were. When she didn't receive a call back, she decided to make her way towards the kitchen.

… Until her eyes spotted a piece of paper next to the flower pot on the table.

Curious, Jesse walked over to the table and picked up the paper. She immediately recognized Olivia's handwriting scrawled across the paper and began to read.

 _Jesse,_

 _Something came up so Axel and I had to leave for a bit. Sorry for not waking you, but we both decided to let you sleep in. I wasn't sure when you'd wake up, so I thought I'd leave you a little note so you don't worry about us suddenly disappearing on you._

 _I mean, you probably wouldn't worry about us too much, but I just wanted to make sure you knew we didn't just abandon you at my place._

 _Anyway, would you mind staying at my house for a bit? It's up to you, though. I'm not sure when I'll be back, but I hope you can stick around for a little while. :)_

 _-Olivia_

 _P.S: Axel says he's sorry for not cleaning up some of the cookies in my room. Seriously, if you guys had to throw cookies at each other, why did it have to be in MY bedroom?_

 _P.S.S: Axel also says he wants a rematch and that he will reign supreme over the imaginary 'cookie kingdom' you guys imagined when you had the cookie fight. You guys are my best friends but sometimes I question both of your sanities._

 _psss: olivia said that if i had anything else to say i should just write it myself. man all i wanted to say was that i'm better than you at cookie wars and next time we should totally hit up my place and finish what we started. also have you seen my place yet? i have an awesome secret room and everything! even a super secret room! :D_

 _pssss: wait it's not a secret if i tell people. umm ignore what i said._

 _psssss: geez now olivia says to hurry up because we have to go. aw man can't i just-_

The sentence ended abruptly and a line from the final 't' went from the word toward the edge of the paper as if someone had grabbed the piece of paper away from the writer as they were writing in mid-sentence.

Jesse looked over the note one more time before she hummed thoughtfully and placed the note back on the table. She wondered what her friends had to leave for and Jesse mentally debated what she should do.

On one hand, Olivia did ask if Jesse could stick around the house for a bit. Unfortunately, there wasn't much to do other than raid Olivia's bookshelf for a good book to read or take a peek at Olivia's redstone inventions and maybe see what they did.

On the other hand, Jesse could see if she could find her friends and see what they had to leave for. Maybe even see if she could help out in some way. Jesse still wanted to work out a new house design with her friends and see if she could push past her Builder's Block. If she helped finish their task faster, then the faster her friends could help her.

After some thought, Jesse decided to go track down Axel and Olivia.

Once Jesse began making her way out of the house, she tried to think of where her two best friends could have gone. Could they have possibly gone to Order Hall? Maybe they got asked to help someone in town? Maybe someone wanted Olivia to help fix a redstone problem? Perhaps someone needed Axel's explosive skills to get rid of unwanted structures?

As she continuously asked herself questions that wouldn't be answered anytime soon, she reached the door and opened it before she moved to step outside…

… But not before nearly running into Malia.

"Huh?" Jesse couldn't help but voice her confusion a soon as she saw the trader inches away from the doorway. "Malia? What are you doing outside of Olivia's house?"

"Um, uh, is this Olivia the Redstone Master's house?" Malia asked nervously, wringing her hands together and looking around almost frantically as if she was trying to avoid Jesse's stare. "Oh, so it is! You know, I was looking at the front of this house wondering 'hm, you know, this looks like a place someone of the Order could totally live at' and I was right!" The strange trader began to laugh nervously, "Ahah, I mean, how could I have known this was her place before I began standing out here? It's not like she told me this is where she lived!" She then began clearing her throat before she reached out and leaned on the doorway. "Enough about me! What are you doing here?"

"Uh, Olivia asked me to come over for a sleepover last night. You were there when she asked me, remember?" Jesse's eyes narrowed and looked at the nervous trader suspiciously. "Is something going on?"

"O-oh, right! Yeah, I was around when that happened. How could have I forgotten? I must be getting forgetful in my young age, heh heh." Malia just shrugged as she avoided looking at Jesse's suspicious stare. "And why does something have to be happening? Everything could just be totally normal and have nothing really important going on."

Jesse just continued to stare Malia down and crossed her arms. "Malia… seriously, what's going on? I'm not dumb; I can tell you're lying… and really badly."

"M-m-m-me? Lie?" Malia stuttered out, practically shrinking under Jesse's glare. "W-why would I do that? I mean, there's not…"

"Malia…" Jesse said in a warning tone.

"W-well, I wouldn't say that something is-"

" _Malia!_ "

"Eep!" The nervous girl squeaked out in panic the moment her hero called out her name. Malia continued to glance at Jesse for a few more seconds before she let out a sigh. "Okay… maybe something is kinda… sorta… going on."

"Do you mind telling me what's happening then?" Jesse asked, still staring down the trader. Whatever Malia was hiding, it must have been big if she was practically sweating like crazy.

"Okay… okay, I can do this," Malia told herself reassuringly before she took a deep breath and stared at her hero unwaveringly. "I… need your help building my new shop."

Jesse blinked.

Huh…

That had honestly caught Jesse by surprise. She wasn't sure _what_ she was expecting, but it certainly wasn't that.

"You want me to help you build a shop?" Jesse asked, almost as if she wasn't sure she had heard the strange trader correctly the first time. "Why?"

"Um… yeah," Malia mumbled as she rubbed her arm nervously. "I've, uh, been thinking and I thought that maybe… I could set up shop in this town. Beacon Town does have a lot of people and everyone needs blocks for building or supplies in general and some people don't want to go out and get them on their own, so they buy it from people like me." Malia paused for a moment before grinning excitedly. "Though I mostly want to set up shop because you guys live here! Who DOESN'T want to say that they're a merchant in the town where the Order of the Stone lives?"

"Okay, I guess that's a few reasons to want to build a shop," Jesse mumbled before she pointed to herself. "But I don't get why you're asking me."

"Oh… well…" Malia's shoulders slumped and she looked down depressingly. "I… uh… I'm not a very good builder. I can make simple structures like that shack I made back in the roofed forest biome, but actually making something look nice and someplace people would want to go to?" She shook her head. "Way out of my league."

She then looked at Jesse with excited, starry eyes. "And who better to help me than someone from the Order of the Stone! You guys are probably experts when it comes to building!" She then pointed at Jesse. "Especially Jesse the Awesome Leader!"

"Uh…" Jesse was at a loss for words for a moment before she looked at Malia curiously. "Wait, when did you start calling me the 'Awesome Leader'? I mean, I like to think it's true, but I've never heard you call me that before."

"Hm? Oh, Axel suggested I added the word 'awesome' to the title I made up for you since just calling you 'Leader' was a little lacking before. It's okay, but I feel like we can come up with something better. It's a work in-progress right now," Malia said with a shrug before she gave her hero a wide grin. "So, what do you say? Interested in helping me out?"

"Well…" Jesse began, looking at the trader hesitantly. "I'm not sure… have you asked Lukas?"

She wanted to help – of course she did – but there was still the fact that she still had her Builder's Block. If Jesse couldn't help herself get over that, how would she be of any help to Malia?

"Um… I'm pretty sure he was busy the last time I saw him. There's no way he'd be able to able to help me out," Malia said slowly, almost cautiously. She then clapped her hands together in front of her and looked at her hero pleadingly, like a cat wanting a fish. "Please~? You did say you owed me yesterday. It would really mean a lot if you could help me out today."

Jesse felt her hesitation get thrown out the window as she felt her resolve to help grow. She _did_ say she owed the trader and was Jesse going to let a little thing like Builder's Block get in the way of helping out someone in need? Not on her watch if she could help it!

"You know what? I _will_ help out! We are going to build you the greatest shop in this whole city!" Jesse raised a hand in the air in a heroic pose and smiled confidently. "Let's do this!"

"Great!" Malia cheered before she pointed in a direction. "Come on! I picked this neat spot that's across town. I bought the deed to the plot of land and I made sure there's enough blocks to build it with, so we should be good to start building right away."

"Wow, that was fast," Jesse commented as she began walking in the direction Malia had pointed out. "It hasn't even been a day since we got back and you already got everything you need."

"What can I say? I'm good at getting what I need, when I need it," Malia said, beginning to rush ahead. "Let's go make me a shop!"

Jesse quickly followed, having already pushed what she had originally planned to do to the back of her mind.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

"Is it me or is there not that many people out today?" Jesse wondered aloud, noticing only a few people walking around in the market district on the west side of town. She remembered it being a lot busier on an average day.

"I don't think I'm the one to be asked about that. I'm not exactly a local," Malia said, glancing at the passing buildings and stalls before they finally reached their destination. "Well, we're here."

The plot of land was just a field of grass waiting to be built on. It wasn't exactly a large plot, but it wasn't the smallest Jesse had seen. Right in front of the area was a few large chests and a crafting table.

"Okay, everything should be in these chests!" Malia walked over to one of the large chests and opened it. "I made sure to put in all the blocks I thought we'd need and even a few I'm pretty sure we'd never use." Malia paused for a moment before she turned to Jesse. "Don't ask about oak wood because I'm completely out."

"Hey, where are your llamas? I kind of half expected to see them around here," Jesse asked, glancing around the market district and saw hide nor hair of anything that even remotely looked like a llama. All she saw was several buildings and stalls and the roof of Order Hall in the distance if she squinted hard enough.

Malia almost froze at the question before she turned away and looked down at the chests. "Oh, uh, I thought they'd get in the way so I left them at a stable close to one of the inns. They might have decided to wander into the middle of the building-in-progress. I love them, I really do… but sometimes I wonder what's going on inside their heads."

"Ah, that makes sense." Jesse nodded before she went over to the chest and looked at its contents. "Do you have any idea what you want the shop to look like?"

"Uh… I want it to look like a shop," Malia said simply, staring blankly at her hero.

"Right…" Jesse mumbled, wondering what Malia's idea for a shop even looked like before shaking her head. "Okay, how about this; what's your favorite color? That way I can have an idea what kind of blocks we could use."

Malia blinked at the question before she pointed at her light blue poncho and her blue hair, almost as if her favorite color was obvious and she was surprised Jesse would ever ask such a question.

"… Alright, blue it is." Jesse nodded to herself and reached into the chest and pulled out a few stacks of various blocks and handed one set to Malia. "I guess we can work out the specifics while we're working on it. You ready to get started?"

"Ready? AM I EVER!" Malia squealed out excitedly. "Building my new shop with Jesse from the Order of the Stone? How could I NOT be ready?!"

"Good to hear! Let's get started!"

And so, the two girls got to work.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

Jesse was pleasantly surprised that the shop had turned out better than she could have imagined and it was done a little before sunset.

The inside of the shop wasn't anything extravagant in Jesse's opinion, but it certainly looked like a shop. The walls were made of light blue concrete with stone brick wall trims and the floor was made with spruce wood planks. The room was lit from the redstone lamps that were lined up nicely on the ceiling. There were some small birch wood partitions that acted as aisles on both sides of the shop with frames that would soon hold items that would showcase what Malia had to offer. There was a birch wood counter in full view of the spruce doors so Malia could greet whatever customers she had.

The outside walls looked incredibly similar to the walls inside, only there were lapis blocks on the outer edges of the walls and doors that complimented the light blue blocks nicely. There were two windows in front of the store and on both sides of the building that looked into the shop. The path leading up to the door was made of polished andesite and the roof was made of stones slabs that extended outward just in case someone needed cover from the rain.

Other than a few minor details that she figured Malia could handle herself, the shop was as complete as it could be.

So there was Jesse, standing on the newly completed flat roof being thanked by the extremely happy trader.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Malia smiled widely at her hero as she shook Jesse's hand and was almost vibrating excitedly. "This place looks AMAZING! It's even better than I could have hoped for and a hundred times more fantastic than anything I could even hope to imagine! So, again, THANK YOU!"

"Hey, all in a day's work for the leader of the new Order of the Stone," Jesse said as she smiled back, pleased that she was able to help her new friend with her problem.

Sure, she wasn't able to do some of the things she wanted to do that day, but Jesse was fine with pushing it to the side in order to help someone in need.

"It really did take us a day to make this place, didn't it?" Malia wondered aloud as she let go of her hero's hand a looked down at the roof they were standing on. "And here I was worried I was going to bother you and disrupt any plans you had today."

"Well, I did have some plans I had wanted to do today, but I guess I'll just have to put it off again," Jesse replied with a shrug before she leaned her back on the parapet of the rooftop.

"Oh?" Malia asked, looking at her hero curiously. "Do you mind if ask what you had planned?"

"Hm…" Jesse paused for a moment before she shook her head. "No, I don't mind at all. You see, at first I wanted to meet up with Lukas and Olivia and see if they could help me out with a design for a house since I've been having a problem with Builder's Block."

Malia just nodded as she was listening. "Oh, I see- wait a minute," Malia said before she did a double take and looked at Jesse in confusion. "But you just helped me design a shop without any trouble at all! Honestly, you have anything BUT Builder's Block."

"… I guess," Jesse mumbled before turning around and looked down at the street below. "Maybe I'm only having Builder's Block when it comes to houses I'm designing for me."

"Huh?" Malia sounded even more confused than before. "Why would you have trouble making something for yourself?"

Jesse sighed to herself and leaned her head on her hand. "I don't know, I just… every time I always pictured where I would live, the one thing that always came to mind was my old treehouse that I used to live in with my friends. But because of the Witherstorm incident, it's been gone ever since."

"Hmm, then why not make a new treehouse?" Malia asked, sounding intrigued.

"Well… I tried making a few designs at one point," Jesse said sadly. "But every time I did, I was reminded of all the old times I had in that old place. Especially about… well…" Jesse looked solemn as old memories popped up into her mind yet again. "… An old friend."

Jesse waited for Malia to say something else, but the trader remained silent, so she continued. "So I tried to move as far away as I could from the whole 'new treehouse' idea and… well…" Jesse pulled out a piece of crumbled up paper from her inventory and put it on the ledge next to her. "See for yourself."

Malia went up next to her, picked up the paper, and unfolded it. After a few moments, Jesse looked over at Malia and saw she was staring at the paper before she hummed to herself. "Um… a golden castle with a redstone door and an emerald block flagpole?" The trader looked at Jesse and raised an eyebrow in surprise. "I never took you for the flashy and gaudy type."

"So I've been told… repeatedly…" Jesse sighed as she turned away from the strange trader. "Maybe I should just forget about making myself a new house."

"Wait, what?" Malia looked at her hero in shock. "Where would you live then?"

"Hmm…" Jesse considered that for a moment before answering. "Maybe I'd live in Order Hall. I have been staying in the basement for a while now, but I guess it wouldn't be too hard to make a sort of living quarters for me there," She said before she chuckled. "I practically live there now anyway. Besides, people would always be able to find me there if they need help with anything."

"B-but…" Malia began to stutter, but Jesse wasn't sure why. "U-um, you'd still want to live in a treehouse, right?"

"I…" Jesse glanced over at Order Hall thoughtfully. "I don't really…" She began to say before something caught her eye.

Wait a minute…

Jesse narrowed her eyes and raised a hand to the side of her head to shield her eyes from the lowering sun.

What was that behind Order Hall?

She couldn't really make it out but she could see some… leaves?

"Hey, Jesse! Down here!"

Hearing a familiar voice, Jesse's eyes snapped away from the odd sigh and looked down at the street, smiling as she recognized the caller. "Ah, Axel! How's it going?"

"Everything's going great!" Axel called up, stopping in front of the new shop and looked at Jesse while almost bouncing in place. "Can you guys come down here? I want to talk to you for a sec!"

"Sure!" Jesse called back, as she headed toward a ladder that was built on the side of the building and began to climb down.

As soon as Jesse and Malia climbed down off the roof, they both went up to Axel and Jesse looked at him curiously. "What's up, Axel? Did you get done with whatever came up?"

"Oh, yeah, yeah, I'd say it's pretty much done," Axel said with sly grin and held his hands behind his back. "Listen, there's something _really_ important I need you to do for me, Jesse."

"Sure, what do you need?"

"Like, it's really, really important," Axel said as he tried to keep himself from smiling any wider.

Jesse raised an eyebrow. "Uh… I know. You just said it was important."

"Yeah, and I mean, like, life and death important." Axel paused for a second. "Okay, not really life and death, but it's really, really, REALLY-"

Jesse just sighed and raised a hand to signal Axel to stop. "Axel, I get it. Whatever you're about to say is really important. Now, what is it?"

Axel blinked and cleared his throat. "Oh, right. Anyway…" Axel removed his hands from his back and held something in front of him. "… Put this on."

Jesse took the object and stared at it in confusion before turning back to Axel. "… A blindfold? Uh…"

"Ah, ah, ah! No questions!" Axel held up a hand to Jesse's face. "You said you wouldn't ask any."

Jesse blinked and stared at Axel in confusion. "Uh… I never said anything like that and you never told me not to ask questions."

Axel's face turned blank for a moment before he rubbed the back of head sheepishly. "Oh… uh, don't ask questions anyway?"

Jesse just let out small sigh before she put the blindfold up to her eyes and tied it around her head. "Alright, the blindfold's on. Now wh-"

All of sudden, Jesse felt like she was lifted into the air and thrown over a shoulder.

"Wha-" She began to say, before she pieced together what had happened. "Axel, why did you pick me up?"

"Because we'll move faster this way!" Axel answered as Jesse heard him walk forward. "And we don't have to lead you through the town with that blindfold and have you tripping over some random block in the way or something. Besides, I promise not to drop you." A short pause. "… This time."

"Woo~! We're doing this!" Jesse heard Malia say excitedly as she heard the trader follow them.

Jesse had absolutely no idea what was going on, but she figured it had to be some sort of surprise if Axel was extremely insistent on having her put on a blindfold.

In the end, she decided to let Axel carry her around like a sack of potatoes and waited for them to reach their destination.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

"Are we there yet?" Jesse couldn't help but ask after she waited a while for them to reach… wherever they were going.

"Hmm, yeah, I'd say we're pretty much there," Axel responded, stopping in his tracks. Jesse heard Malia continue to walk forward, but she wasn't sure where the trader was going.

"Great, then-"

"Axel, you can't be serious."

Hearing another familiar voice, Jesse turned her head towards it and waved her hand. "Hi, Olivia! Nice weather we're having, aren't we?" She said, failing to keep herself from laughing as she tried to imagine what Axel carrying her over his shoulder looked like.

Jesse imagined it looked incredibly ridiculous, judging from Olivia's tone of voice.

"What? I didn't want to drag her through the streets with the blindfold on. This seemed way easier!"

"Axel, it looks like you manhandled her. I can't imagine what people were thinking when they saw Jesse tossed over your shoulder like that."

"Aw, come on, practically everyone in town knows what's going on. They probably didn't think it was strange or anything."

"Well, you could have-"

"Uh, guys?" Jesse interrupted their little squabble. "If Axel can just put me down, I'd like to take off this blindfold and see what's going on for myself."

"Oh, right! Hang on." Axel quickly took his friend off his shoulder and placed her on the ground.

"Thank you," Jesse said as she reached behind her head and untied the blindfold before taking it off. "Was that so ha… rd…?"

Jesse blinked in disbelief.

She rubbed her eyes to make sure she was seeing things right.

Then her jaw dropped.

Right before her was a massive oak tree that reached up high into the sky, but not high enough to reach past the clouds. The tree was surrounded by natural cliffs that curved around the tree perfectly. She stared down at a gravel path that led to a set of double oak doors and the various flowers that dotted the sides of the path. In front of the doors and at the other end of the path was two sets of wooden lamp posts that held torches in four directions.

Dotted around the field of grass and flowers to the sides of the path were several of Malia's llamas staring out into space and looked like they didn't have a care in the world. Malia stood next to her horse that had blended in with the herd of llamas, looking at Jesse expectantly and with a large grin and a wave.

Looking up, she saw a massive circular window on a large oak wood log house that looked like it had slightly merged with the leaves and the tree itself. The foundation of the house looked to be made of oak wood planks and a stone brick trimming along the wall of the house. The vibrant leaves surrounded the house naturally and extended outward, casting a bit of a shadow on the ground.

Jesse turned around and saw the back of Order Hall. The gravel path that connected to the tree traveled down a small mound before it curved and led to a door to the left of the back of Order Hall. Jesse didn't ever remember that door ever being there before.

The stunned leader wasn't even sure how long she was staring with her mouth wide open in shock for the whole world to see.

"So… what do you think, Jesse?"

Jesse quickly came to her senses and closed her mouth firmly before she turned and saw Olivia giving her a small friendly smile and Axel grinned widely.

"H-how…? When did this…?" Jesse wasn't even to form complete sentences before she turned and looked at the massive tree that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. "I don't even… how in the world…?"

"So… um…" Olivia began as she rubbed the back of head anxiously. "How do you like the look of your new treehouse?"

Jesse quickly did a double take as soon as those words had left Olivia's mouth. "My new WHAT?!"

" _Surprise!_ " Axel shouted loudly before pulling out a firework and releasing it into the air, causing it to explode in the air with green sparks. "Let's celebrate by throwing a huge house party! Let there be cake!"

"Uh, Axel, maybe we should let Jesse see what the inside of her new place looks like first _before_ we jump straight into a party." Olivia shook her head before letting out a sigh.

Axel frowned slightly before he crossed his arms impaitently and grumbled under his breath.

"So, um…" Jesse turned and saw Malia walk up to her, holding her hands behind her back and looked at her hero sheepishly. "I know earlier you said you were thinking of maybe moving into Order Hall because you couldn't think of a good design for a house…" Malia smiled slightly. "… But maybe you'd want to live in a place that the rest of the Order of the Stone made together."

Jesse's eyes widened and she turned back to Axel and Olivia. "Wait, you guys made this place? Together?"

"Uh-huh," Olivia said with a nod. "I did all the redstone circuitry and made sure if the new treehouse ever caught on fire, there would be a sort of fire protection system in place to keep the treehouse safe."

"Meanwhile, I helped add a secret room to the place!" Axel said with a smug grin on his face. "You can't have a brand new home without a secret room with a whole bunch of cool stuff! There's a few zombie heads, a few emerald blocks just because they look awesome, and a place to stash a mountain of TNT. You know, just in case you want to blow things up with your best bud," Axel added with wink.

"I, uh, actually didn't build anything, heh," Malia said with a chuckle. "But they used the building blocks that I keep in my llama's chests and I gave everyone permission to use whatever blocks they wanted, free-of-charge." The smile dropped from Malia's face and she looked over at her llamas. "Though… I'm probably gonna need check my stock and make arrangements to replace what was used." The trader paused for a moment before she grinned. "But, hey, I have a cool new shop now and I can brag to people that the leader of the new Order of the Stone's new treehouse was made with _my_ blocks! So it was worth it as far as I'm concerned."

Jesse slowly took in everyone's contributions before she looked at them curiously. "And Petra and Lukas? What did they do?"

"Hmm…" Olivia looked thoughtful for a moment before answering. "I think Petra cashed in a few favors and got some builders in town to help make the treehouse faster before you realized what we were planning. While Lukas… well…" Olivia waved her arm and gestured to the whole treehouse. "He was the one who thought to gather us together and make you this treehouse in the first place. Everyone made it based around the design he created with a few tweaks here and there from Axel and me."

Jesse remained silent as she stared back up at the treehouse, too stunned to say anything.

"So, uh... can we see the interior of the treehouse now?" Malia said with slight bounce. "I'm really excited to see what the inside looks like now."

"Yeah, let's go. Petra and Lukas should still be inside waiting for us," Olivia said as she and Axel began to walk toward the doors to the treehouse before she turned and saw Jesse still taking in the sight of her new treehouse. "Um… you coming, Jesse?"

"Hm? Oh, right." Jesse snapped out of her thoughts before she nodded and quickly caught up with her friends.

Opening the door, Jesse noticed several water source blocks being held up by signs. "Uh, what am I looking at here?"

"I installed a zipper elevator to help us get up and down the trunk of the treehouse faster. There's something similar back in Ellegaard's old lab," Olivia said before she stepped inside the elevator and began to float up.

"I'm just glad we don't have to climb tons and tons of stairs or ladders. I don't think I'd EVER come and visit if that was the case," Axel said happily before stepping inside and began to follow Olivia upward.

Jesse stared at the elevator for a moment before stepping inside and rose up in the zipper elevator, followed closely by Malia.

Eventually, the four reached the top of the elevator and opened another set of doors, exiting the elevator in the process. The room they had entered was made of oak wood log wall and an oak wood plank floor. It was rather spacious and there was a massive circular window opposite to where the elevator was. There was a table on one corner of the room surrounded by chairs next to some chests. At the other corner was several bookshelves surrounding a desk with a redstone lamp place on it. High up on the ceiling was several redstone lamps hanging down and lighting up the room nicely. On both sides of the room was a staircase that both led up to an oak door. There were a few doors next to the elevator and right above her was what looked to be a sort of balcony that had a full view of the massive window.

"Aw, wow! I can see all of Beacon Town from here!" Malia squealed excitedly and went over to the window and pressed her face up against it. "Just look at this view! It couldn't get any better than this!"

Jesse went up to window and looked outside. The new massive treehouse was just tall enough that it looked over Order Hall and she could see all the buildings and tiny specks that had to have been people down below.

"Woah..." That was the only word that Jesse was able to say. She was too stunned to say anything more coherent.

"It's a good thing you're not afraid of heights, right?" Axel went over to the window to stand next to Jesse and looked down toward the ground. "I can't imagine what it would be like for you if you were. You'd probably be all dizzy just looking at the ground faaaaar below us. Maybe you'd feel a little faint and start to wobble back and forth. You'll eventually feel like you got to-"

"And I'm going to have to stop you right there before you make ME feel sick." Olivia walked up to Axel, shaking her head.

Axel shrugged sheepishly. "Hey, it was just a thought."

"Finally! There you guys are!"

The four turned and saw Petra standing up on the balcony and leaning on the fence surrounding it and smirking down at them. "You guys wanna come up? Lukas is putting the finishing touches on some windows in the new bedroom," She called down to them before she turned around and entered the room and turned around, ushering them up.

They quickly walked up one of the sets of stairs and entered through the door. The bedroom was also as spacious as the room they were just in, only there were what looked to be two smaller rooms on both sides of the larger room. There were a few armor stands on one side of the room and there were a few posters hanging on the wall. The floor was carpeted and the pattern of the floor remind Jesse of her favorite colors. The single bed next to the wall facing towards them was also her favorite colors, as was the stained glass window that was behind it.

Lukas stared at the window thoughtful, hand on his chin as if he was thinking really deeply about something.

"Uh, Lukas? You're not still deciding whether you want to use normal glass panes and not stained glass panes, are you?" Petra walked up behind Lukas, rolling her eyes in annoyance and crossing her arms. "Seriously, it looks fine. A window is a window; you can see out of it and people can see back in. It doesn't matter if it's colored or not."

"Hmm, I'm not sure," Lukas said, still staring at the colored, fancy window. "I mean, the color works with the rest of the room, but I'm just not sure if it's overdoing it, you know?"

"No… no, I really don't know," Petra responded with a sigh and a shake of her head.

"But what if I just-" Lukas turned around before he cut himself off just as he saw who had entered the room and smiled. "Oh, Jesse! You made it!"

Jesse, who had been looking around her new bedroom as she took it all in, looked back at Lukas and waved. "Hey, Lukas."

"Alright!" Axel walked to the middle of the room and pumped his fists into the air. "Now that we're all here and we've looked around, let's get this house party started!"

"Axel, we just got here. We can have it in a little bit," Olivia said before she went up to the stained glass windows and looked at Lukas. "I think they're fine the way they are, Lukas. I say leave them."

"Really? Thanks Olivia," He glanced over at Olivia before turning back to Jesse. "So… uh…" Lukas chuckled. "This is all probably a lot to take in, isn't it?"

"You could say that," Jesse said with a nod before she looked at her friend curiously. "I'm just… I don't even know how you guys got the time to plan all this. I mean, a build this size must have taken forever to plan."

"Actually, I came up with the design for the treehouse when we were all on the mission to the village." Lukas shrugged slightly and rubbed the back of his head meekly. "When we weren't dealing with illagers, kidnappers, and getting emeralds, I was working out how the place would look. I kind of had to work on it when we got what little free time we had. I stayed up a little after we all went to bed to make sure I was able to work out any details or kinks in the blueprints."

"Um… a little?" Malia turned away from the poster she was looking at and stared at Lukas as if she was amused about something. "I don't think I would consider staying up half the night 'a little'."

"I said I was on a roll, okay?" Lukas stared at the trader warningly before turning back to Jesse. "Anyway, remember when we were at the small inn at the village and I said I was thinking about writing what happened with the kidnapper in my journal?"

Jesse thought about their little talk that night before her eyebrows shot up in realization. "Wait… you lied and you were actually drawing out the blueprint for the treehouse?"

"Yeah, sorry, I kind of wanted to keep it a surprise for as long possible." Lukas shrugged again. "At first I was thinking I would just make it over time with the others, but ended up deciding to try and make this place in one day before we ended up on another crazy adventure that took us half way across the world or something. We wouldn't have been able to finish today if it wasn't for Petra's idea to get help from other people in town to make this."

"You're welcome, by the way," Petra said with a smirk.

Jesse remained silent as she nodded, looking like she was deep in thought.

"Um… so…" Lukas rubbed the side of his arm slightly as he stared at Jesse curiously. "What do you think about the new treehouse? You haven't really said much about what you think about all of this."

The rest of Jesse's friends turned to her in anticipation, awaiting whatever reaction she would have: good or bad.

Jesse was silent for a long time as she looked over at all of her friends one by one before her eyes settled on Lukas.

She had decided how she felt about the new treehouse.

"I…" She began before a smile grew on her face and she looked like she was overflowing with happiness. "I _love_ this! You guys did all of this for me! All of you put so much thought into what I would like in a house, that I just… I'm just… amazed! I can't even think of what else to say just… _wow_!"

Lukas breathed a sigh of relief before he grinned happily. "Thanks, Jesse."

Petra walked up to Lukas and elbowed him. "Told you she'd love it," She said, smirking when she saw Lukas squirm slightly.

Olivia walked up to Jesse and smiled. "I'll admit, I was little worried what you would think about us going behind your back to make this. I was almost afraid you'd get upset."

Jesse just smiled reassuringly at her friend. "Olivia, there was no way I was going to get upset about you guys making me a giant treehouse of all things! If anything, I feel like I should make you guys your very own new giant house!"

"You really don't need to do that, Jesse." Olivia shook her head, still smiling.

"Yeah, but I kind of want to anyway," Jesse said with a wink.

"Psst, Jesse." Jesse turned around and saw Axel staring down at her as if he was waiting for something. "NOW can we have the greatest party of all time?"

Jesse pretended to be deep in thought over Axel's request before she gave him a wide grin. "Of course we're having a party! Can't have a brand new house without one!"

"Yes!" Axel cheered, fist pumping the air. "That's just another reason why you're one of my best friends, Jesse! You know when to have fun and let loose!" Axel turned around and went towards the bedroom door. "Now, let's get all the snacks and fireworks we need. I made sure to craft piles of them for the party."

"Wait, Axel!" Olivia called after her friend just as he left through the door. "Please don't tell me you're not going to set off the fireworks IN the treehouse! I don't want you to set off the fire protection system by accident! At least see if you can set them up on the roof or something!" The panicked redstone user quickly followed Axel, in hopes to stop him from ruining all of their hard work.

"Aw, I kind of want to see the fireworks," Malia grumbled slightly before she shrugged. "But I really need to gather up my llamas and take them to the new shop. I need to prepare for my opening day soon." She began to walk through the exit, but not before turning around and waving at Jesse. "Glad you like the new house, Jesse! Hope you come by my shop soon! I'll be sure to give the entire Order of the Stone discounts." With those final words, the trader left.

"And there they go…" Petra said, before she glanced at Jesse and Lukas and turned back toward the door. "Hmm… I think I'll go track down where Axel and Olivia have run off to. Catch up when you guys feel like it." The redhead shrugged before making her out of the room.

Realizing that her friends had left her and Lukas behind, she turned to blonde and pointed toward the door. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's join the party."

"Right."

As the two left the new bedroom and began to head down the stairs, Lukas looked over at Jesse and smiled. "I'm really glad you like the new treehouse, Jesse."

Jesse looked back over at her friend and smiled back. "Thank you for getting everyone together and make me a new treehouse, Lukas. I still find it amazing how you were able to get everyone to make this huge place in less than a day." Jesse turned away before a thought occurred to her and she looked back at Lukas curiously. "Hey, Lukas. Can I ask you something?"

Lukas raised an eyebrow before nodding. "Yeah, what's up?"

Jesse stopped at the bottom of the stairs and looked at him in confusion. "I don't know why, but I feel like I should ask… why did you do it?"

"Huh? Why I did it?" Lukas repeated unsurely. "What do you mean?

"I was just thinking… you could have just drawn up the blueprint and showed it to me. Then we could have built it together with the others and you wouldn't have had to make it a surprise and keep it from me in the first place." Jesse shrugged. "I'm just trying to understand why you wanted to surprise me."

"Oh… hm…?" Lukas was silent for a moment as if he was considering her question before he smiled slightly. "Jesse, you know me and the others are your friends, right?"

"Uh…" Jesse wondered why Lukas would ask that of all things before she nodded. "Yeah, of course."

"Well, that's kind of why I did it." Lukas turned around to face her and placed a hand on her shoulder, still smiling. "I just… I felt like I wanted to show you how much you mean to everyone. You were having problems with your Builder's Block and I just wanted to show you that me and the others have your back just as much as you have ours. With all the crazy stuff we've been through, you've pulled us through the toughest of situations and proved time and time again that you're someone who puts her friends first and foremost before anyone else. I just thought I'd remind you that all of us… me, Petra, Olivia, and Axel… that we have your back just as much as you do." Lukas chuckled before he let go of her shoulder and rubbed the back of his head shyly. "I guess what I'm trying to say is… Thanks for everything, Jesse."

Jesse's eyes widened before she grinned widely and threw her arms around him in a tight, friendly hug, surprising her friend. "Thanks, Lukas. That means a lot."

Lukas tensed up slightly, unsure how to even react before he forced himself to relax and hugged his friend back. "Anytime, Jesse."

After a moment, Jesse released her friend from the hug and looked around the main room. "Now, let's see where-"

"I've found the cake!" Slamming the door open and storming through, Axel walked through carrying a tower of cakes. "Plenty for everyone and then some! Forget about a cookie coma, this will but us into a CAKE coma after the party tonight."

"Just don't start throwing cake at Jesse like you did with the cookies at the sleepover last night," Olivia said as she followed Axel. "We don't want any repeats of the cookie war you had with Jesse."

"I'm sorry, did you just say cookie war?" Petra asked, carrying some cakes as well as she went over to the table in the room and placed them down. "How did something like that even happen?"

"Funny you should mention it," Axel said with a smirk as he placed down the tower of cakes on the table as well. "You see…"

"Hey, Axel!" Jesse called out, walking over to the tower pile of cakes and looked up at Axel, trying to keep herself from smiling. "Remember when you left all of the spoils of war that you left for me to clean up this morning?"

"Uh, yeah, my bad, Jesse," Axel said apologetically. "I kind of forgot until Olivia and I were about to leave her place. We were kind of in a hurry to meet up with Petra and Lukas and-"

"Oh, I understand, Axel," Jesse said with a grin, picking up a piece of cake off the table. "But do you know what they say about war?"

Axel looked down at Jesse's cake piece before grinning and picked up his own piece. "I don't know, Jesse. What do they say?"

"Oh no…" Olivia backing away from the two of them. Lukas and Petra just glanced over at the other, confused about what was about to happen.

"Well, they say…" Jesse began, before raising her arm up and quickly slammed the piece of cake she was holding into Axel's face. "… It's not over until it's over!"

"Then let's finish this once and for all!" Axel declared, throwing his own piece directly onto Jesse's head, who was grinning despite the mess of cake that she was now wearing.

"Well, so much for eating the snacks," Lukas said with a sigh before looking down at the piles of cake. "Just imagine the mess-"

Before Lukas could even react, he quickly found himself with his face covered in cake.

"Wow, Lukas, how clumsy of you," Petra said with a smirk as she tossed another piece of cake she had picked up into the air.

Lukas brought his hands up to his face and wiped the cake that covered his face. He sent a glare towards Petra's direction before picking up a whole cake off the table and raised into the air. "Okay, you asked for it, Petra!"

"Hah! You don't have the gu-" Petra began before she found herself with cake thrown directly into her face.

"You were saying?" Lukas asked with a smirk of his own.

Petra responded by throwing a piece of cake directly at his mouth in attempt to shut him up.

As the ensuing cake war was happening, Olivia watched in astonishment as she saw both Petra and Lukas join in on the mess that Axel and Jesse was making. With a shake of her head, she looked down at the table and saw the piles of cake still resting on top. She hummed in consideration before she picked up a piece of cake and tested its weight in her hand.

"Well…" Olivia said with a shrug before she raised her arms up defensively and walked toward the onslaught of thrown cakes. "When you can't beat them, join them."

And so, the party was in full swing as the entire new Order of the Stone threw cake at each other, smiling while they took each cake to the face and threw each piece at their friends.

It was a cake war that would never be forgotten for as long as all of them lived.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

The crescent moon shone high above the clouds as the wind gently blew the leaves of the birch trees. The zombies and skeletons slowly walked around, looking for anything they could kill before they inevitably burned in the upcoming daylight. The chickens hid in the flowers and the grass, away from the monsters as they softly clucked in their sleep.

A lone creeper glanced around to see if there was any unsuspecting victims, but all it saw were the miles of trees and grass as far as the eye could see.

 _*shuffle, shuffle, shiff*_

The explosive monster turned quickly toward the noise as it prepared to explode, but saw nothing there but the trunk of a large tree it was standing next to. The leaves of the tree shook softly, but was more than likely due to the gentle breeze. Satisfied there was nothing there, the creeper turned away from the trunk and continued to look around.

Unbeknownst to the unsuspecting creeper, a soft noise continued to move upward through the tree until it finally reached the top. As soon as the shuffling had stopped, a stack of birch wood planks appeared in midair. Quickly and quietly, the blocks were placed down on top of the tree until a small platform was made.

The moment it was completed, Culain had reappeared, satisfied in his small build.

Culain quickly glanced over the edges of the platform to see if any monsters had detected him the moment he became visible. Glad that the monsters didn't notice his presence, the hooded man lifted his arms as if he was stretching before he laid down on the platform and put his hands behind his head as he looked up into the night sky.

He was glad that he had a bit of break before he had to move on. It wasn't much, but relaxing as he looked up at the stars in the night sky were a small comfort to him.

The mysterious man was about to drift off to dreamland before he quickly remembered that he had to do one last thing before he could relax.

Reaching into his inventory, Culain pulled out a thin rectangular object that was about as big as his hand. It was black and had a thin layer of glass on its top and two small grey circles on the top and bottom of the front of the object. One circle was covered in a thin layer of glass as it looked like it was staring at the person holding it. The other circle had a small picture of a creeper face on it.

Pushing down on the creeper face with his thumb, Culain watched as the thin layer of glass glowed white for a moment before it changed and showed a simple grey background with several tiny squares on it, each with a different symbol. On the background was a black creeper face with the word _mineCom_ underneath.

Culain tapped the symbol that looked like a picture of a journal and the glass screen turned white yet again, but this time it had several letters on the bottom in small square boxes. There was also a thin line of symbols and words on top of the screen, but Culain ignored them as his fingers began to dance along the small boxes as words began to appear on the white screen.

 _Data Entry: #145_

 _Location: MCSM101315_

 _Objective: Completed_

 _I have successfully tested the Morph Amulets (v. 1.33) on the sentient mobs: the illagers. The three illager types (Evoker, Vindicator, and Illusioner) were all able to transform into various types of mobs with no ill side effects. In fact, they seem to be able to transform more seamlessly than a normal human being._

 _I was able to locate the illagers in a remote mansion located in a roofed forest biome. While it is unknown why illagers prefer to make their home there, it made tracking the necessary targets that much simpler._

 _The moment I entered the mansion, several of the illagers became hostile to me, as was expected. However, in order to get in their good graces, I was able to avoid killing any illagers at the time and was able to convince their established leader to allow me to test the Morph on them while I could observe the process. They agreed, but only at the cost of kidnapping the villagers from a nearby village. The illagers apparently had a grudge against the simple village that spanned generations._

 _I begrudgingly agreed to the deal._

 _I was able to swiftly infiltrate the village and took the villagers from their abodes. Pleased that I was able to do it quickly and without incident, the illagers killed the common mobs while holding onto the Morphs._

 _Like humans, the illagers were unable to access their inventory the moment they entered a new form. While unsteady at first, they easily adapted to the new form with ease. They were also able to use the abilities of the selected mob, including gaining their weaknesses._

 _The ability to teleport like an enderman._

 _The power to explode just like a creeper._

 _The weakness of the sun that all zombies and skeletons held._

 _The illagers performed the necessary tests without incident._

 _When the tests were completed, however, the illagers had grown attached to the power of the amulets and had even begun planning to kill humans and taking their place. They were essentially planning to commit genocide on the entire human and villager races._

 _I slaughtered them before they could proceed with their plans._

 _With the tests completed, they were no longer of any use. As such, I was free to deal with them as I wished._

 _And I wished for them to die._

 _After I was able to eliminate them, I successfully retrieve-_

Culain paused typing midsentence as a thought occurred to him. Placing the mineCom on the ground next to him, he reached into his inventory and pulled out a stack of Morphs. Sitting up, he began to place the amulets on the ground as he counted them out.

Eighteen… nineteen… twenty.

He was missing five.

Culain frowned, remembering that he had allowed the group of heroes that he had met to take the amulets with them.

Of course, that meant he was five amulets short. He would have had to tell his superiors where they had gone and Culain did _not_ want to explain why he allowed an unauthorized group to take important equipment. He wanted to be on their good side for as long as possible.

Culain could have simply taken the amulets back from the three he had trapped. He could have simply not given a Morph to the girl he had beaten in a dual.

He could have done a lot of things.

And yet…

Quickly coming up with an idea, Culain grabbed one of the amulets he had laid down and stood up. He walked toward the edge of the platform and turned invisible. With a running jump, the invisible man leapt from the platform and landed on a shorter tree.

The creeper down below heard movement from behind and turned to face a nearby tree, ready to explode. As soon as it saw no one was around it slowly turned around…

… Only for it to run face first into a hooded man.

"Boo," Culain said, taunting the creeper with an arrogant grin.

Enraged, the creeper hissed as it prepared to explode. The moment the creeper was on the verge of blowing up, the mysterious man quickly stepped back several paces and dropped an object on the ground.

 _*BOOM*_

The only thing left by the green mob was a hole. The creeper was no more and it wasn't even able to harm the man that taunted it as it died.

Culain glanced down into the hole, searching for any sign of the amulet he had dropped by the creeper. Pleased to see no trace of the object, Culain swiftly turned invisible yet again and quickly began to climb up the tree, making sure that no other hostile mobs could even attempt to kill him.

Once the hooded man was back on the platform he created, he picked up the nineteen amulets he had placed on the ground and put it back into his inventory. He laid back down on the ground and picked up his mineCom and continued typing.

 _After I was successfully able to eliminate them, I successfully retrieved most of the amulets used by the illagers._

 _However, a few of the hostile illagers retaliated. They were able to transform into creepers and tried to blow up in my presence in an attempt to sacrifice themselves to save the rest of their kind._

 _I was able to avoid the explosion of the illagers-turned-creepers and I was unharmed._

 _The amulets that they held, unfortunately, were destroyed in the blast._

 _Perhaps in a future version, the Morphs will be able to take on explosions without being destroyed._

Culain smirked to himself, pleased that he had come up with a clever story to satisfy his foolish superiors.

 _So in conclusion, my primary objective was a success and I was able to get the necessary data needed to make an improved version of a Morph._

 _I will perform the final check-up before returning._

With those final words, Culain glanced over the report he had written to make sure there wasn't any simple mistakes. After a thorough read-through, he tapped on the word ' _Send'_ on the top bar and watched as a grey pop-up appeared with a picture of red parrot holding a letter in the middle of the screen. The moment the parrot flew toward the edge of the screen, the word ' _Sent_ ' appeared on the pop-up.

Satisfied, Culain pushed the creeper-faced button on the device, powering it down. He placed the mineCom back into his inventory and put his hands behind his head as he prepared to relax.

His eyes turned up toward the sky yet again, watching the crescent moon as his mind drifted toward his memories of other times he had viewed the starry night above.

While he remembered them fondly, he felt a sense of longing deep within his heart.

A longing to return to times much happier – to enjoy them once again.

A longing that he knew would never be fulfilled.

He knew this.

And it hurt.

It always had.

And it always will.

* * *

 ** _END OF EPISODE ONE: ILL-GOTTEN DISCOVERIES_**

 ** _NEXT TIME…_**

 ** _EPISODE TWO: FROM THE HEART_**

* * *

 **A/N: Welp, I had intended to finish this by the time season two came out, but... well, real life happened. :,D**

 **Oh well, better late than never, huh? xD**

 **That also means I haven't been able to play the new season yet. I wanted to finish up the episode of my story before I played it. By the time you read this, I should have finished it all in one go.**

 **... Unless my laptop explodes or something. In that case, it was nice knowing everyone. xD**

 **I won't talk about it in any future author notes, so you don't have to worry if you want to avoid spoilers. :3**

 **Anyway, THE TREEHOUSE OF FRIENDSHIP HAS FINALLY BEEN CREATED! Yes, I'm calling it that. Yes, I'm aware it sounds a little cliche. No, I don't care if it does. xD**

 **I know we didn't explore the rest of the Treehouse of Friendship, but I have a few good reasons for that.**

 **One, I thought I'd leave it to the imagination of the reader to think of all the sweet new rooms the rest of the Order added for Jesse. HOORAY FOR IMAGINATION! *cue confetti***

 **Two, I AM NOT WRITING ANOTHER TEN THOUSAND WORDS DESCRIBING EVERY SINGLE ROOM IN EXCRUCIATING DETAIL! Do you even know how boring that would be to read AND write? PAINFULLY BORING!**

 **Besides, I'm sure people want to get to the next episode this decade, right? xD**

 **Hope everyone enjoyed the first episode of 'Beyond Limits'! From here on out, the stakes are going to be higher, friendships will be tested, more mods will appear, and... well, wouldn't you like to know. ;D**

 **Eh, I'm sure it'll be fine and there will be nothing to worry about. Probably. :D**

 **But before that, let's have a tiny intermission first! I won't spoil what's going to happen in it, but I will say it's probably going to be a little silly. xD**

 **Before I end this author's note, I will say that this story is definitely an AU at this point.**

 **However, I'm considering this more of a season 1.5 AU more than a season 2 AU right now. I like to think that if the events in the village never occurred, this story would never have happen. The new treehouse wouldn't have been planned out, Olivia would have probably settled the whole Redstonia thing on her own or continued to hide it or something, the group never meets Malia, and all the events that happened after would never have been put into motion in the first place.**

 **If Culain hadn't decided to go with the illager's plans and kidnap villagers, season two would have happened normally.**

 **In other words, everything that's going to happen is Culain's fault.**

 **Yep... nice going, buddy. YOU'VE DOOMED US ALL!**

 **Oh well, guess we have no choice but to move forward. Until next time! :D**


	11. Episode 2: Prolouge

**_EPISODE TWO: FROM THE HEART_**

 **PROLOUGE**

The Nether; a dangerous dimension filled with hazards considerably worse than the Overworld.

Streams of oozing, bubbling lava poured down from the ceiling above as it pooled onto the netherrack ground below. The zombie pigmen that surrounded the deadly molten rock paid it no mind as they mindlessly wandered around, going about their daily routines as they walked around and stared into the distance. The ghasts floated around high up towards the ceiling and let out a small cry reminiscent of an infant as if they were talking to one another.

To any sane human being that dared entered the deadly Nether, they would quickly go about their business and leave as soon as they possibly could. Long periods of time spent in the hot, dangerous dimension would drive even the most level-headed person past their breaking point, either due to the overwhelming heat, the terrifying monsters, or the lack of sleep.

The spiky dark haired man that was passing by, however, looked completely bored with the familiar sight as he took a stroll past the pools of scalding lava.

Glancing up toward the floating ghasts, the spiky haired man kept his diamond sword in hand as he prepared to hit back any fireballs that dared try to come anywhere near him.

The pale skinned man didn't look like any sort of warrior considering his lack of armor. Instead, the man opted for a grey t-shirt with a black leather vest that had an image of two black bones under a black skull in the form of an 'X' surrounded by a light grey outline. His jeans were a slightly darker shade of grey with the occasional tear and hole along the legs of the pants. Although whether the tears was from a monster or was simply part of the design choice was anyone's guess. His black leather boots looked incredibly worn and plain, which had mostly likely been owned for years.

Content that the ghasts seemed anything but interested, the spiky haired man continued on his path until he reached a wall of netherrack that seemed incredibly out of the way. Glancing around to make sure there were no unlucky saps following him, he began to look around the wall until his sight landed on a small hole next to a pool of lava. Reaching into the hole, he flipped the lever that was hidden away and stepped back.

As soon as the lever was activated, the sounds of pistons was heard as the wall opened up and revealed a hidden staircase made from nether brick. With one more paranoid glance around him, the unknown man began walking up the stairs, flicking up another lever as he passed by to close the wall behind him.

After a long climb, the man eventually reached the top of the stairs and found himself in a familiar room that had been dug out by a few people and their pickaxes. The room was almost completely made of netherrack, save for the ceiling that was completely covered in bedrock – a block no one would be able to break. Right in the center of the room was a line of redstone and a lever connected to a piston, shut off and pointed up toward the ceiling. On the one side of a room was a wall of obsidian that had a large window that showed another room and an iron door leading into it.

With a yawn, the man walked up to the piston and reached into his inventory to grab what he needed. Pulling out some soul sand, he placed the sand on top of the piston in the shape of a small 'T'. After he placed the four blocks down, he reached back into his inventory and pulled out three black wither skulls. Placing two skulls down first, he readied his stance as he prepared to make a run for it as soon as the last skull was placed.

With one swift motion, the man placed the final skull on top of the soul sand and he made a run for it just as there was a small explosion.

A newly formed Wither stood in the place of the 'T' of soul sand and skulls, glowing blue as it began to prepare to attack any and all living things it came across. Soon, it will-!

With a flick of the lever and a sound of a piston extending, the newly formed Wither quickly found its three heads up inside the ceiling of bedrock, unable to do anything but suffocate as soon as it stopped glowing blue.

Satisfied that the Wither didn't look like it was going anywhere any time soon, the bored-looking man sauntered over toward the door on the obsidian wall and left the main area.

The room itself was rather small. It only had a few chests, a single bookshelf, and a chair next to the window to view the Wither to make sure the monster suffocated without any complications. The obsidian might not protect someone from a Wither for too long, but it provided just enough buffer for the man to escape out a secret hatch, just in case.

Sitting down on the chair and propping his feet up on the chest, the bored man pulled out a single book and began to read with great focus. The book was far more interesting than the suffocating Wither that he could view from the window.

Eventually, the Wither finally met its end as it poofed into white smoke and dropped a singular nether star – a rare item that could be only found by killing a Wither.

Of course, normally the way to kill a Wither would be to fight it directly after preparing oneself to the best of the person's abilities. Preferably with armor that was as strong as diamond and a good sword that had the smite enchantment.

The spiky haired man, however, thought that fighting a simple Wither over and over again had simply lost its appeal. He would admit to himself that fighting the Wither the first few times was practically liberating and sent a rush of adrenaline through him, but after a while it just seemed mundane and not worth his time to fight them one-on-one again and again.

Besides, why wear himself out fighting one when he could take out several Withers with the piston method and not have a scratch on him?

Pleased that the Wither had finished dying, the man closed the book and stood up off his chair. Placing the book back into his inventory, he walked out of the obsidian room to collect his prize.

On the extended piston was a glowing, four-pointed star, just ready for it to be taken. With another flick of the lever, the piston extended downwards and the man grabbed the nether star, placing it into his inventory for safety.

The bored looking man reached into his inventory to see how many skulls he had left to kill off another Wither. With a frown, he realized he only had one wither skull left.

"This is getting ridiculous," The man grumbled to himself. "I can't be out already."

"Hey! Boss! You up there?"

Hearing a familiar voice, the surprised man glanced over toward the stairway and saw one of his lackeys walking up the final step. He was a dark skinned man with brown eyes and a light green headband around his forehead, holding up his black bangs with a singular dark green highlight up into the air. He wore a simple light green t-shirt with dark green stripes and a black vest, similar to the one his boss was wearing. He also had light brown fingerless gloves and pants that was of a similar color.

"Ashton, you do know that you shouldn't come up here if you don't plan on dying, right?" The boss man merely shrugged and smirked. "It won't be my fault if you rile up the Withers enough that they realize that they're suffocating and come to kill you just because they can."

Grimacing at the mental image of getting blasted by a wither skull, the lackey known as Ashton shuddered. "Ugh, yeah, I know. But you said to let you know as soon as possible when we figured out where the item we're looking for might be." The lackey frowned and scratched the side of his head. "What exactly is it supposed to do, anyway? You said it's going to help us out, but you aren't saying how."

"Really?" The boss man, ignoring the question, brought his full attention to Ashton and rubbed his hands together, looking incredibly pleased. "Well, looks like Lady Luck is finally working out in my favor. So, where did you narrow it down to?"

"Around some mountain somewhere. I think I remember hearing something big happened there, but can't remember what exactly off the top of my head," Ashton said before he shrugged. "Don't really know the area too well, so maybe we can get a local or something to show us where it is."

His boss scoffed. "Please, like I'd let some weakling chumps lead us there. They'd probably get themselves killed if things get a little… hectic," he said, smirking when he saw his lackey's eyes widen and nodded. "Now, I'll see if I can get something to help lead us there without getting lost like the last time there was an expedition," He said before he began to walk by Ashton and toward the stairs, but not before slapping a hand on his lackey's shoulder. "Now let's get a move on."

"Huh?" Ashton looked over at his boss, confused. "I'm coming with you? I mean, I'd have thought you'd want to go alone, Boss," He asked, feeling shivers roll down his spine as he saw his boss give him a practically wicked grin. However, his next sentence was almost what one would call innocent.

"Pack your inventory, Ashton. We're going on a field trip."

* * *

 **A/N: Oh boy! A field trip! Time to pack my bags and... wait, I'm not invited? Aw... :(**

 **Anyway, yeah, I'm aware this is a little short considering the last few chapters were rather long, but this story's prologues are more like previews of what's to come anyway, so they don't need to be long. :3**

 **Also, before anyone asks, the thing mister 'Boss man' was doing with the Wither was a trick that worked to pretty much kill a Wither effortlessly before 1.8. You can't really do it in the Nether in future versions, but oh well. The MCSM world of this fanfic doesn't really have 'versions'. :P**

 **I'm glad people liked the first episode! Hope episode two will be just as good, if not better. :3**

 **Though, I'll admit, I'm a little hesitant at some parts toward the end of this episode because I'm a little worried they're going to bring it up in the new season. Mostly about a few 'things' with my own personal creative spin that I have planned.**

 **What 'things' do I have planned? Well, you're just going to have to read and find out, aren't you? ;)**

 **Hm, while I think about it, I might as well ask...**

 **What's everyone's thoughts on shipping?**

 **I'm just asking to see where people's thoughts are on it. Mostly because of future character development things that I haven't really decided on yet.**

 **I also had a small silly side story planned, but it's not done yet. I kinda wanted to post it along with the prologue, but I guess I'll post it along with the next chapter when it's done. :3**

 **I do believe that's all I really needed to say. UNTIL NEXT TIME! :D**


	12. Episode 2: Chapter 1

**CHAPTER ONE**

"Are we ready to do this?" Jesse asked as she huddled together in a group with Olivia and Axel, looking at both of them with a serious expression.

"Hm… I don't know, Jesse. Are you sure this is going to work?" Olivia asked, looking at her best friend with worry. "This seems a little dangerous."

"Okay, I know this hardly ever happens and it seems totally out of character for me, but I'm going to have to agree with Olivia," Axel said, glancing away from his two friends before turning back with a worried expression. "Mostly because I feel like if anyone is going to get hurt by this, it's me."

"Guys, have a little faith. We _so_ got this!" Jesse said, looking completely confident in her plan before she turned to Axel. "Okay, Axel… you know what to do."

"Mmph, fine," Axel grumbled, kneeling down and putting his hands on the ground. The moment he felt someone climb onto his back and held onto his shoulders, he stood back up and felt something wrap around his neck in a hurry and he felt himself stumble backwards a bit. "Woah, hey! I kinda like to breathe, you know!"

"Sorry," Jesse apologized, having to wrap her arms around her friend's neck to keep herself from falling. "Hang on…" Jesse slowly rearranged herself as she slowly lifted herself her legs up until they were on both of Axel's shoulders and she was leaning on his head. "Okay… and… ready!"

Axel began to walk forward – albeit wobbly – and made his way towards a large tree and leaned against the trunk. He glanced up, trying to see what was going on. "Do you see it?"

"Yep!" Jesse responded, putting her elbows on a branch and held out her hand. "Here kitty, kitty! Come to the nice lady! I mean you no harm!"

The grey colored cat that laid lazily in the tree glanced at Jesse with an unamused expression before it got up, turned around, then laid back down as it faced away from the annoyance.

"What?! Aw, come on! Don't you want to see your owner? She misses you!" Jesse called, practically pleaded for the cat to come to her.

The cat paid Jesse no mind as it flicked its tail and continued to face away from her.

"Any luck up there?" Olivia called up, trying to see if she could spot the cat from her position on the ground.

"No, the cat doesn't want to budge even a little bit," Jesse called back before she glared at the cat. "Don't make me come over there and get you myself. I know the tree seems nice and safe and all, but you got to come back to your owner sometime."

Once again, the cat ignored Jesse in favor of licking its paw instead.

"I brought some fish!" Jesse turned her head and saw a dark blonde woman running through the gate of Beacon Town and ran toward the trio. "My little Creampuff just loves her raw salmon," She said as she handed it to Axel who then reached up and handed it to Jesse. The dark blonde woman looked up at the tree and cupped her mouth with her hands. "Hang in there, snookums! Mommy's here and the Order of the Stone will rescue you!"

"I'd run away too if someone called me snookums," Axel muttered under his breath quietly so the woman couldn't hear him.

"Axel, shush," Jesse whispered before turning her attention to the grey cat and held up the salmon in front of her and put on a friendly smile. "Lookie what I have here! It's your favorite! You know you want it!"

The grey cat lazily turned her head and glanced at the salmon before she slowly got up.

"Yes! Good! Come get the fishy!"

The grey cat turned around and lowered her head as her tail began twitching behind her.

Jesse's smile dropped from her face as soon as she saw the hungry stare the cat was giving her. "Wait, hold on a sec-"

It was at that moment that Creampuff pounced.

Letting out a surprised yelp, Jesse dropped the salmon she was holding onto just as soon as the cat had jumped onto her. She quickly grabbed the cat before it tried to escape and held onto the hungry animal.

"Aha! Got you!" Jesse yelled in triumph.

"Um, why do I feel something slimy on my head? Something tells me it's not a slime ball," Axel asked, having felt the fish Jesse had dropped on top of him.

The cat looked down at the fish on Axel's head and let out an angry growl, struggling in Jesse's grasp as she tried to break free.

"H-hey now! Easy there buddy," Jesse tried to sooth the animal.

The hero's attempts to calm the savage beast was in vain as it successfully struggled out of Jesse's hold and leapt onto Axel's head and sunk her claws into the large man.

"AH! GET IT OFF!" Axel couldn't help but yell as he stumbled back from the tree and reached up to get the cat off his head as quickly as possible.

"Axel! WOAH!" The sudden movement from her friend caused Jesse to lose her balance on top of Axel and the next thing Jesse knew, she had fallen to the ground and landed on her back.

Having successfully gotten the salmon in her mouth, Creampuff leapt off of Axel's head and strutted over to her owner, looking up at her happily and innocently.

"Are you two okay?" Olivia asked, who had winced in sympathy as she watched her friends tangle with the beast.

"As well as I can be from getting clawed in the head…" Axel groaned.

"Is the cat okay?" Jesse asked from her place on the ground.

"Yeah…" Olivia nodded.

"Then I'm great!" Jesse gave her friend a thumbs-up for emphasis.

"Oh my little cutie pie, you're finally back with me safe and sound!" The owner said happily as she picked up the cat and held her in her arms. "Thank you so much, Order of the Stone! I'm terribly sorry about the trouble my little Creampuff has caused you."

"Hey, it's not a problem! We were happy to help. Just try and keep a better eye on Creampuff from now on, okay?" Jesse said as she sat up on the ground and gave the woman a friendly smile.

"Oh, I will! Thank you again!" The woman said as she smiled back at Jesse before she turned around and headed for the gate with her cat. "Now my little Creampuff, I am going to feed you so much salmon when we get back home."

The moment the woman was gone, Axel grumbled as he reached up to his head and rubbed the spot where the cat had clawed him. "I don't see why that little monster should be rewarded with even more fish after all that trouble."

"Axel, that poor cat was probably scared up in that tree. It probably deserves all that fish his owner will give him," Olivia said as she walked over to Jesse and offered her friend a hand up.

"Uh, I would not use the word 'scared' to describe that cat," Jesse said as she took her friend's offer and pulled herself up.

"Hmph, rescuing random felines from trees now, are we? Is business for the new Order really that slow?"

Hearing a sudden but familiar voice, the three friends turned towards the path in front of the gate before Jesse smiled widely. "Ivor! You're back!"

Ivor looked the same as ever with his black hair and beard while wearing his dirty old olive green coat. The older man let out another 'hmph' as he crossed his arms. "Of course I'm back. You really didn't think I'd be gone forever, did you?"

"Honestly, we didn't know what to think," Olivia said as she walked up to Ivor along with the others. "You disappeared with the Atlas and the enchanted flint and steel. We kind of assumed you went back to the Portal Network and went traveling."

"Yeah, you gotta tell us all the adventures you went on! What kind of worlds did you travel to?" Jesse asked with a cheerful smile, happy that the older man didn't disappear for too long and was back in their lives.

"Did you bring any cool new stuff with you?" Axel questioned, looking rather excited. "You wouldn't mind if I borrowed it, do you?"

Ivor gave Axel a slightly annoyed look. "No, I didn't bring anything for you to play with. And as much as I would enjoy telling you all of my travels, I just came back to get a few things of mine. After I get what I need, I'll be on my way."

"What? You just came back and now you're leaving again?" Jesse asked disappointedly.

"Yes, well, I have a few… prior arrangements that I have to take care of first," Ivor said as he began walking toward the gate of Beacon Town and gave them a small wave. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll be on my way."

"Aw, come on, Ivor!" Jesse called out, quickly rushing to his side and walked beside him as Axel and Olivia followed her. "You can't just say 'hi' and run out on us just like that. What's going on that you don't have time to talk to us about it first?"

Ivor looked over at Jesse first before glancing behind him at Axel and Olivia. With a grumble and a frown, he faced forward again and continued walking toward Order Hall. "Nothing! Absolutely nothing that you three need to concern yourself with."

Jesse stopped walking as she let Ivor get ahead of her. She turned towards Axel and Olivia and began whispering to them. "Guys, do you mind letting me and Ivor talk alone for a while? Something's going on with him and I might have better luck if I talk to him one-on-one."

Olivia and Axel just glanced over at each other before Olivia nodded. "Alright, go see what's bothering him and we'll catch up with you later."

Jesse nodded back before rushing forward to catch up with Ivor. "Hey, come on. Not even a little hint as to where you've been to? I'm practically dying of curiosity over here."

The alchemist just glanced over at Jesse. "I suppose you're not going to stop pestering me until I say where I've been, are you?"

"Nope!" Jesse said as cheerfully as she could and gave Ivor a smug grin.

With a roll of his eyes, Ivor let out a sigh of defeat. "Fine, if you really must know… I visited Crown Mesa."

Jesse's eyes widened in recognition. "Oh, the world where we defeated PAMA and rescued all those people from under its control," She recalled before she smiled. "That must mean you've visited Harper! How has she been? Is she getting along with the other residents?"

"As far as I can tell, they seemed to have at the very least tolerated her helping rebuild their home." To Jesse's surprise, Ivor muttered grumpily under his breath. "Some getting along with her more than others..."

"Okay…" Jesse mumbled, looking at Ivor curiously. "What about you and Harper? Have you two been getting along fine?"

"Hmph! We're getting along just fine! Everything's just peachy between us!" Ivor snapped angrily, storming up to the doors of Order Hall before turning back to Jesse. "JUST. PEACHY!"

With that final shout, he stormed inside and headed for the basement.

Jesse just stared wide eyed at the door, completely and utterly stunned.

Last time she saw Ivor and Harper, they seemed to have been getting along well as far as she could tell.

What could have possibly changed in just a few weeks to make Ivor so upset?

"Ivor! Wait up!" Jesse called out, rushing inside Order Hall and made her way towards the basement. She caught up to him just as he was heading downstairs. "Ivor, something is definitely going on between you and Harper. Did you guys have a fight or something?"

"What?" Ivor turned around and looked at Jesse, almost as if he was surprised she would suggest such a thing. "We had no such thing happen between us. Whatever gave you such a crazy idea?"

"Maybe because of the way you've been acting? People don't just storm angrily into places unless there's something going on."

"Hm, I suppose that would give away that something was wrong, wouldn't it?" Ivor asked aloud to no one in particular before he finished walking down the stairs and headed for a line of bookshelves.

"Yeah, it's kind of a dead giveaway," Jesse deadpanned.

Ivor looked over at Jesse and his face softened when he saw her staring at him with concern. With a sigh, he turned back to the bookcase and began to look through it. "Jesse, while I admit that there may be something going on, I won't tell you what. I appreciate the concern, but it's my personal business and I feel like I should handle it myself if I can." He paused for a moment before he turned back to her. "If I do think I need help, you'll be the first person I ask."

Jesse was silent for a few seconds before she nodded. "Okay, Ivor. I'll try and back off and let you handle whatever's bothering you."

Ivor just nodded back silently and turned back to the bookshelf. With a grin, he pulled a book he was looking for off the shelf and held it in his hand. "Ahah! Just what I was looking for! Now to look for the others!" The alchemist said to himself, letting out a practically evil laugh as he did.

"… Ivor, please tell me you're not hatching another diabolical plan that involves building another Wither," Jesse asked half-jokingly.

"What? I wouldn't do such a thing!" Ivor snapped before a thought crossed his mind. "Although, I must say it is tempting…" He muttered under his breath before shaking his head and turned to Jesse with a glare. "Don't go blabbing to your little friends about what we discussed, understand?"

"My lips are sealed, Ivor," Jesse said with a reassuring smile.

"I, uh, guess I should say something like that too, huh?"

Poking his head out from behind the bookshelves Ivor was looking through, Lukas gave his two friends a slight smirk. "I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

"Lukas? You're down here?" Jesse looked over at the blonde in surprise. He was one of the last people she expected to find in the Order Hall's basement.

"WHAT? Blonde guy?!" Ivor looked over at Lukas in surprise before glaring at him and holding the book he was holding protectively. "What did you hear? Did you follow us? Why didn't you say anything?"

"Uh… okay, first, I heard everything the moment you guys came down to the basement. Second, how could I have followed you if I've been down here all along? And third, I was reading and you guys sounded like you were having a serious conversation and I didn't want to interrupt at a bad time."

Ivor continued to give Lukas a glare before turning away with another 'hmph'. "Fine, whatever, just don't go spreading what me and Jesse discussed around," the alchemist grumbled before he walked towards another line of bookshelves and carefully looked it over.

"I'll keep quiet about it, don't you worry," Lukas called over to Ivor reassuringly. He then looked over to Jesse with a smile. "Hey, Jesse. Didn't know you were planning to take a trip to the basement with Ivor."

"Hey, Lukas. What are you doing down here?" Jesse asked, smiling back. "Don't tell me you're down here trying to make blueprints for a new house or something." She let out a chuckle. "Because been there, done that."

"Heh, if I tell you I'm doing just that, are you going to plan to make me a brand new house in secret with the others?"

"Hmm, now _there's_ an idea. Why didn't I think of that?" Jesse joked with a small laugh before she glanced down and noticed Lukas was holding a book. "Huh, what's that you're reading? Anything good?"

To Jesse's surprise, she saw Lukas hesitate slightly. "Um… yeah, I guess you could say that…" He said before holding up the book so Jesse could read the title.

 _'An Idiot's Guide to Brewing: Learning the Basics and Knowing Your Ingredients!'_

"A brewing book?" Jesse looked at Lukas in surprise. "Since when have you been interested in making potions?"

"It's a… recent interest," Lukas said carefully, being unusually cryptic to Jesse's continued surprise.

"Huh…" Jesse thought carefully, trying to figure out what caused her friend's sudden interest before she looked at him curiously. "Is it because of what happened with that kidnapper a week ago? Culain was practically throwing potions left and right when he ran away with Brian."

"I… guess that had something to do with it," Lukas murmured, raising his hand up to rub the side of his face where his black eye used to be. It had cleared up not that long ago, but Jesse could tell it still bothered her friend thinking about it.

"While we're on the subject of the kidnapper…" Lukas began before shooting a glance over at Ivor who was still looking through the bookshelves. "Think you should ask Ivor about the stuff that Culain guy gave you?"

"Hmm… you mean about the amulet and the doll?" Jesse wondered aloud before grinning. "Hmm, that's not a bad idea! He might have some idea what the doll can do and maybe he might have an idea what the deal is with the amulet. We know what it does, but that's about it. Who knows where it even came from?"

Before Jesse could turn around and call Ivor over, a thought occurred to her. "Speaking of asking Ivor, maybe you should ask him to teach you how to brew. We both know Ivor is _the_ guy to ask about that kind of thing."

"Huh… you think I should?" Lukas asked as he put a hand to his chin in thought. "Do you think he would teach me a few things?"

"I don't see why not," Jesse said reassuringly. "If anything, I bet he would be thrilled to teach you. I mean, seeing as Ivor…"

"'Seeing as Ivor' what? What are you two talking about behind my back?"

Nearly jumping out of their armor in surprise, Jesse turned to Ivor and let out a breath. "Geez, Ivor. We didn't even hear you sneak up on us."

"Hmph, can you blame me? You two were in so deep with whatever you were talking about, I'm not surprised it took me actually saying something for you to notice I was standing right behind you." Ivor crossed his arms and looked at the two impatiently. "Now, what is it you two were discussing?"

"Right..." Clearing her throat, Jesse decide to start. "About a week ago, we ran into this kidnapper that was taking all the villagers from a village and, well, long story short we got a few items from that adventure that I'm hoping you could shed some light on," she said before she pulled out the doll and held it out to Ivor.

"Hmm… let me see that," Ivor said as he took the doll from Jesse and brought it up to his face. It only took a few seconds before his eyes widened and he grinned in excitement. "Jesse, what you have here is a Totem of Undying!"

"A totem of what now?" Jesse looked at Ivor quizzically. "What does it do?"

"As the name suggests, it keeps the holder from dying," Ivor clarified, handing the totem back to Jesse. "Fire, falling, suffocation, combat… as long as someone is holding that, they will survive no matter what. However, it can only be used once. So use it wisely." He began stroking his beard in thought. "The old Order was originally planning to visit a Woodland Mansion in search for one after we had defeated the Enderdragon but…" Ivor looked at Jesse solemnly. "Well, you know what happened."

"Wow…" Lukas stared at the object with wide eyes before turning to Jesse. "Culain was not joking when he said you should hold onto that."

"Yeah…" Jesse mumbled as she stared into the glittering emerald eyes of the totem in thought.

Something that could save someone from dying only once, no matter the cicumstance.

An item like that would have been invaluable during the Witherstorm incident. If Magnus had something like it, then he wouldn't have died in the first place.

And if Reuben would have had it…

Jesse slipped the totem into her inventory. She was definitely keeping it on her just in case someone she cared about needed it.

"And the second item?" Ivor asked, looking at Jesse curiously.

"Huh? Oh right…" Snapping out of her thoughts, Jesse quickly took out the blue amulet and held it up to Ivor.

"Hmm…" Ivor muttered, taking the amulet from her and stared at the ever-changing black symbol on it. "What a strange object. I've never seen anything like it before."

"A bunch of illagers was using it to transform into anything they killed," Lukas explained, pulling out his own and showed it to Ivor. "The kidnapper apparently had a ton of these that he handed out to them like cookies. Do you have an idea where something like this would have come from? Maybe have any idea what the name of it is?"

"Really?" Ivor looked over at the blonde in surprise before he looked back at the amulet. "I've never heard of anything like this before. Something like that sounds rather… impossible," The alchemist handed the amulet back to Jesse before putting a hand to his chin in thought. "I might not be able to shed any light on the object, but I think I can think of one person who might be able to."

"Let me guess. Harper?" Jesse predicted with a smirk.

"Well… actually, yes. She definitely would have a more extensive knowledge of objects, especially if they came from another world," Ivor said, almost sounding wistful.

"Great! I guess that means we're coming with you back to Crown Mesa," Jesse said with a grin.

"Wait, we are?" Lukas looked over at Jesse in surprise.

"Of course we are! Seeing as Ivor plans on heading back there as soon as possible and…" Jesse looked over at Lukas expectantly. "Now's a good time to ask him, if you want."

"Oh, right. Guess it's my turn," Lukas mumbled before he raised the book he was holding to Ivor. "So, I was thinking…"

"What's that you have there?" Ivor glanced at the title of the book before his eyes widened. "Wait, one of my brewing manuals?"

"Yep," Lukas said with a nod. "See, I've been doing a lot of thinking and…"

"FINALLY! One of you has finally seen the light!" Ivor exclaimed, reaching out and grabbed Lukas by the shoulders. "I was wondering when one of you five was going to decide to learn the gloriousness that is brewing and enchanting! I was half-expecting Olivia or maybe even Jesse there to ask me, but beggars can't be choosers, I suppose."

"Uh," Lukas muttered, momentarily stunned from Ivor's sudden excitement. "Actually, I don't really need to learn about enchanting. I just want to learn a little about how to make a few po-"

"There is no learning 'a little' when it comes to brewing, Louie!" Ivor wrapped an arm around Lukas' shoulders, pulling him closer. "You either go all in or you don't go in at all!" The alchemist took the book from Lukas and tossed it behind him. "You don't need something like this! Not when you have something better right next to you!"

"Hey! I was reading that!" Lukas complained, having lost his place in the book.

"It's worthless compared to my knowledge!" Ivor said with a completely smug smile.

"Aw, I knew it!" Jesse smiled happily and nudged Lukas on his shoulder. "See? Told you he'd be absolutely thrilled."

"Hmph, I'm not thrilled," Ivor grumbled, letting go of Lukas. "I am simply… pleased, that's all."

"Yeah, you seem a little more than that to me," Lukas said aloud with a smirk.

"Then you're imagining it!" Ivor snapped, storming grumpily towards the stairs and turned back to look at the two. "Now, assuming we don't have anything else to discuss, we should really be going. I would prefer to go back to Crown Mesa as soon as possible."

"Sure, but I should really go ask the others if they want to come with us." Jesse said as she followed Ivor. "Axel and Olivia have never been to Crown Mesa before and I think they'd enjoy the trip. Not to mention Petra is just itching to go out on another adventure."

"Hm… very well," Ivor said, sounding slightly hesitant at the thought of more people joining them. "Meet me in the treasure room once you go collect them. If you keep me waiting too long, I'll go ahead without all of you."

With those final words, Ivor walked up the stairs in a rush.

Before Jesse was about to exit the basement, she turned around and waved Lukas over. "Well, what are you waiting for? Let's go get the others!"

"Just a second," Lukas called back, reaching down and picked up the book that Ivor had carelessly tossed on the ground and began flipping through his pages, trying to find the spot he was at. "Did Ivor really need to throw his own book around like that? I would think he would take better care of them…"

"Ivor was probably just caught up in the moment. You know how he gets," Jesse said as she glanced at the wall of books close to her. Some of them looked new despite the dust that had settled on them while some of their spines looked rather old and worn. Jesse glanced at the titles for a moment before one caught her eye.

 _The World and Its Stories_

 _By Soren_

"Woah, another book by Soren." Jesse took the book off its shelf and looked over it. It looked rather worn, but it did look like it was well taken care of. "At least it makes more sense finding one of his books in Ivor's collection than finding it randomly in another world."

She stared at the book for a moment longer, feeling a wave of curiosity compel her to open the tome and discover the contents it held within. She made a move to open the book…

"There, now I can find my place later," Lukas said, placing a paper bookmark in between the pages and put it safely in his inventory. He glanced over at Jesse and noticed her staring intensely at the book. "Um, Jesse? Shouldn't we go find the others? I don't think Ivor was joking when he said he would leave without us."

"Oh! Right…" Jesse had a staring contest with the book for a moment longer before slipping it into her inventory. "Let's hurry and gather everyone up. An impatient Ivor waits for no man!"

As the two started to head out, Jesse couldn't help but think back to the book she had found. She wasn't entirely sure why she decided to take the tome with her, but she figured Ivor wouldn't mind letting her borrow the book for a little while.

Jesse was sure it would be an interesting read once she had the time to go over its contents.

 ** _-MCSM-_**

One of the things Petra loved in the whole wide world was adventuring.

Looking for treasure, fighting monsters, surviving deadly traps, and traveling with her friends all over their world and beyond.

Doing all of that gave her such a _rush._ It was one of the reasons why she kept coming back for more when a new adventure popped up.

Unfortunately, doing all of that took a bit of a toll on her armor and her beloved sword.

Since there wasn't any new adventures happening, Petra thought it would be the perfect time to go looking for materials to repair her equipment.

So the marketplace was her first stop. It was quick, easy, and should have just what she needed.

Granted, she could have just as easily went hunting for materials on her own. Unfortunately, her armor required diamonds to repair it and she knew finding such a rare material would take time.

For all she knew, her friends could have ended up on another adventure the moment she left town, so Petra decided to stick close to home until something popped up. It always did, after all.

… Petra honestly hoped something exciting would happen soon. She was starting to get a little stir crazy.

"Oh, hey! Petra! Hi!"

Snapping out of her thoughts as she passed by a few shops, Petra turned around and saw a girl running towards her with dark blue shoulder length hair wearing a hat and a light blue poncho with a pattern that was reminiscent of a llama's saddle. She was looking at Petra excitedly and with stars in her eyes.

"Oh hey… Maria, was it? What's up?" Petra asked. The warrior wasn't entirely sure that was the girl's name, but she at least knew it started with a 'M'. They had only met a few times about a week ago, after all.

"Actually, it's Malia, but that was close! You were just one letter off!" The girl chuckled as she rubbed the back of head shyly. She then looked at her hero curiously. "What brings you to my neck of the woods? Have you come shopping for supplies to prepare for some big and awesome Order of the Stone adventure?"

"Well, there's no adventure in the works right now, so I just thought I'd buy some materials I need."

"Materials, you say?" Malia asked with a gleam in her eye. "You have run into the right person! Malia the Marvelous Merchant always has what you need, when you need it… most of the time anyway." The trader couldn't help but laugh at that last statement. "Speaking of materials, I _just_ received a shipment of prismarine shards from my prismarine guy! Now _there's_ a guy who knows his way around an Ocean Temple, I'll tell ya'." Malia hummed thoughtfully, "I think you two would get along, now that I think about it."

"Thanks, but no thanks. I'm not interested in prismarine anything," Petra said. If anything, she was starting to sound slightly annoyed. "I just want a few diamonds and a few gold ingots. That's it."

"Oh, well, I definitely have that in stock! You know what they say: diamonds are an adventurer's best friend! That's why I always go out of my way to have a few in stock," Malia said with a grin. "I'm sure we can work out a trade if you want. Besides, I've been wanting to ask you for a while now if you were back into the trading game. I heard from Lukas that you got something from the Nether for a client and I'd love to arrange something with you! It'd be great to start selling blaze rods and glowstone at the shop!"

"You heard that from him, did you?" Petra asked, making a mental note to strangle a certain blonde later. "Listen that was a… special circumstance. It was a one-time thing and I'm not interested in going back to collecting things for people as a mercenary ever again. Never ever." Petra paused for a moment before she decided to add another one for emphasis. "NEV-ER EV-ER."

Malia looked at Petra in surprise before she looked at the ground dishearten. "Aw, really? You sure I can't change your mind?"

"What part of 'NEVER EVER' do you not understand?" Petra said a bit forcefully. She probably could have been a lot gentler, but she wanted to make her point loud and in the face to get her point across.

Malia looked slightly taken aback before she smiled at the warrior nervously. "O-oh, um, sorry. You don't want to go back to doing that kind of thing. That's, uh, cool. I understand."

"Good," Petra said, crossing her arms. "Glad we got that settled."

Malia nodded before she smiled more confidently. "Still, that doesn't mean I won't sell you any diamonds! That just means you'll probably just pay me with iron blocks or emeralds or whatever else you have." Malia said before she began walking away from Petra. "Just come by my shop if you're interested! I'll still offer a discount for anyone from the Order of the Stone! Hope to see you soon!"

With that, the trader walked back to her shop.

Petra watched the strange trader walk off into the distance before she wondered if she should take Malia up on her offer. She was running a bit too low on iron ingots than she would have liked and she hadn't been taking up any bets with her friends or gone on a mining trip to help refill her empty wallet.

After she counted out how much iron ingots she had on her, Petra decided to go to Malia's shop to purchase what she needed. The trader gave her a pretty good offer and Petra was very much willing to take that discount.

Finding her way to Malia's shop, she saw that the doors were wide open and she began to enter the building…

… But not before pausing as she heard a passing conversation.

"U-um, I'm not really sure I should be selling you this. I-I mean, I only have one of these and I really-"

"You can make more, can't you?" Came a masculine voice that would send goosebumps to the average passerby. "I mean, you are a map maker. You can easily copy it to another piece of paper… or if you're feeling a little more especially _adventurous_ , you can visit that place again and make another one."

Petra heard a small 'eep' from the trader. "I-I guess, but that place makes me nervous. I really wanted to see where it happened at and it was pretty cool to visit there and see the outside, but I don't know if…"

"So why are you so afraid of selling that little scrap of paper to me?" The man asked, beginning to sound annoyed before he let out a slight chuckle. "I would absolutely _love_ to visit there myself. I'm also very willing to pay you a good amount for that little map you have there instead of haggling like I usually do. You wouldn't turn down a good deal, would you?"

"W-well, no…"

"Then a deal's a deal!" Petra heard something clink down on some wood. "I'll be taking that map, if you can be _so_ kind. Oh, and do you mind not telling anyone I was here? It'd make it easier on everyone involved."

The longer Petra was listening in, the tighter her fists were clenching together.

She'd know that voice _anywhere_.

"I think it'd be a little hard to keep it from anyone else if someone was eavesdropping on the whole conversation," Petra walked into the shop, crossed her arms, and looked at the man's back as if she was unamused. "Hello, _Warrick_."

The spikey dark haired man with the black skull and crossbones on the back of his vest turned around to look at Petra in surprise before he smirked. " _Well_ , if it isn't Petra! I didn't think I'd see you around here," Warrick said before he chuckled. "But then again, this is Beacon Town and from all the stories I've heard, you are a part of the Order of the Stone now. Isn't that right?"

"What do you want, Warrick?" Petra asked, deciding to get straight to the point. "Haven't seen you in forever, so it must be some occasion for you to enter my life again."

"Aw, it sounds like you missed me," Warrick teased with a dry chuckle before he walked up to Petra and mimicked her stance. "And didn't you say you were eavesdropping? If you were listening hard enough, you should know I just came by this _lovely_ shop to pick up a map I need for a little treasure hunt I'm planning. Why else would I pop into town?"

Petra said nothing as she raised an eyebrow at him in slight disbelief.

"Heh, to tell you the truth, I visited Beacon Town about a month ago to see what was up with you at the time. Nothing much, just thought I'd visit since I was in the area. Shame that nobody knew where you went off to, though. It was almost as if you wanted to avoid me."

"Me? Avoid you? Perish the thought," Petra said with just a hint of sarcasm. "I was bit busy at the time, so excuse me for not saying hi or whatever."

"Busy with Order of the Stone business?" Warrick asked as his smirk grew. "Well, look at little Petra. Working with the big dogs now. How does it feel to be a part of a group of heroes that the whole world is talking about?"

"I'm taller than you, Warrick. Don't call me little or I'll punch your lights out," Petra threatened with her fist raised.

"Aw, you wound me, P," Warrick chuckled, completely unfazed with her threat. "Anyway, seeing as you're _so_ busy with being a part of the Order of the Stone now, I guess you'll just have to turn down my little invite to join me and a few pals of mine on this little treasure hunt I've planned. I guarantee there might be a few monsters on our little adventure. Would be a shame if we didn't have such a great fighter on our team. Unless you've gotten soft with all the hero stuff I've heard the Order has done. Prefer to rescue some dumb cat in some dumb tree and having the little people practically kiss the ground you walk on than fighting monsters and living life on the edge, huh?"

"Ugh, seriously? I really don't think heroes are out saving cats in trees all day." Petra said with an eye roll. "And while that is tempting, me and the others have a bit of our own treasure hunt we have planned. Looks like you'll have to go on your own treasure hunt without me." While it was a bit of a lie and Petra had absolutely nothing planned, she wasn't sure if she wanted to go with Warrick for old time's sake.

Especially not since… well, Petra would prefer not to think about it if she could help it.

"Well, that's a shame to hear," Warrick frowned slightly before his smirk appeared once again. "You don't know what you're missing out on though. Death defying battles, looting the old place for treasure and selling it for a high price, doing something other than rescuing felines… heh, you don't know what you're missing."

"I'm sure I'll live without knowing."

Warrick frowned for a moment before his smirk came back at full force. "Hey, your loss!" He said before he pushed past her and made his way toward the exit. "Though if you change your mind, I'll be off by the gate preparing to head out. We'll probably be off soon, so you'd better hurry. If you don't come… well," the man chuckled and waved slightly. "Maybe I'll see you later or maybe I won't. Who can say?"

With those final words and the slamming of doors, he was gone.

Petra finally released the breath she didn't realize she was holding and looked over at the door sadly. "Gee, that could have gone better."

"O-oh… um," Malia stuttered out, looking at Petra nervously. "I, uh, guess you know Warrick, huh?" The trader asked nervously. She had watched their entire conversation, but she had been too nervous to say even the tiniest of peeps with all the tension in the air.

"Ugh, don't remind me. He's just… an old friend who I thought I'd never see again. Haven't even heard a peep from him until today," Petra grumbled out loud before she muttered under breath, "And I was thinking I never would again…"

"Um, if you don't mind me asking, but did you work under him before you join the Order of the Stone?" Malia couldn't help but ask as she looked at her hero curiously. "I mean, I know you used to be a bit of a mercenary and collected stuff from the Nether for people, but you had to have run into him at some point. Warrick did used to have a monopoly on the nether star market and you used to collect wither skulls, so I can't help but wondering if…"

"Me? Working _under_ Warrick?" Petra looked utterly repulsed by the very idea. "There's no way I…" Petra trailed off as soon as she realized something. "Wait, did you say he _used_ to have a monopoly?"

"Oh, uh… you haven't heard?" Malia began to fidget nervously before she cleared her throat. "Word around the jungle vine is that a bunch of people that worked under him quit working for him and started gathering wither skulls and hunting Withers on their own and selling the stars themselves. Since wither skulls are so hard to come by to begin with, it made gathering nether stars that much harder for Warrick and he's pretty much lost control over the nether star market. I hear people hardly buy nether stars from him anymore."

Petra said nothing as she looked back at the closed doors and looked to be deep in thought.

"Personally, I think he should try expanding his horizons," Malia hummed in thought. "I mean, yeah, he also gets other materials from the Nether and sells them along with the nether stars, but it doesn't help that the people he's competing against is selling them at lower prices than he does. Maybe he should consider going into the sheep shearing business. Now _there's_ something that he could probably rake the ingots in by the inventory load. People just love using wool for their builds, you know?"

The red head remained silent, not even glancing over at the trader.

Malia blinked in surprise. "Uh… Petra? You okay?"

Petra was silent for a few more moments, glancing over at Malia before facing the doors and threw her arms up into the air angrily. "Ugh! Can't believe I'm about to do this…"

"Uh… do what exactly?"

Petra stormed over to the doors and slammed them open. "I'm going to join Warrick on his dumb treasure hunt."

"Wait, WHAT?" Malia yelled in shock. "Why?! I thought you said you weren't interested?"

"Yeah, well, I changed my mind, okay?" Petra snapped angrily and sent a glare toward the trader.

Malia shrunk back slightly, wondering if she stepped over some unknown boundary. "U-uh, if you're going on an adventure, maybe you should ask the other members of the Order of the Stone to come with you. You guys are a team, so…"

"Nope, not going to do that," Petra said as she turned and looked out the door.

"WHAT? So you're going with Warrick all by yourself?"

"Yep. He's my problem, so I should be the one to deal with him," Petra said before she rushed out the door and out onto the street.

"WAIT! Even if he is a friend you shouldn't…" Malia trailed off when she realized that Petra was long gone. "You shouldn't go out all by yourself…"

Malia stared at the open set of doors, alone with her thoughts.

Petra was going to be fine, right? She was tough and she wouldn't let anything stand in her way.

So what if Malia had heard a bunch of rumors about Warrick. So what if she heard he was pretty much bad news.

The trader began to drum her fingers on the counter as stared at the open doors intently.

So what if Malia was imagining that Petra might be walking into a death trap and Warrick would leave her to die. He wasn't capable of doing something like that, right? There was no way anyone would do something so despicable to a friend. Maybe he wasn't that bad of a guy if someone got to know him.

Right?

…

"AGH! I can't take it anymore!" Malia ran around the counter and headed out of the shop. "I have to go tell the rest of the Order!"

Closing the doors behind her and putting a 'closed' sign down in front of the shop, the trader ran towards Order Hall in hopes of finding the others before Petra left town for who knows how long.

* * *

 **A/N: You ever have one of those weeks where absolutely nothing happens but then the next week ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING HAPPENS?**

 **Ahaha, well, guess the Order of the Stone is gonna have one of those weeks. :P**

 **Looks like Petra is gonna have her time to shine in this episode! I kinda felt bad that she was sent on a fetch quest in the last episode, so I hopefully make it up to her this go around.**

 **Also Ivor's here too! Don't think I didn't forget about him. :3**

 **Anyhoo, new poll is up and ready to be voted on! Sadly, it'll be the only one available in this episode... buuuuut there is gonna be another naming thing later, so there's that!**

 **If you have an FF.N account, just go to my profile and vote! If you don't have one... uh, well, just choose between these mobs and leave a guest review I guess: Creeper, Zombie, Slime, Witch, Spider, Skeleton, and Enderman.**

 **I think you can probably guess what the poll is for, ehehehe.**

 **Also! I'm gonna be putting out some companion one-shots to this story! Er, eventually... I had a bit of writer's block on one of them so I'm typing up another one I had planned. So... yeah, keep an eye out for that!**

 **Guess that's it for now. UNTIL NEXT TIME!**


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